The Pokémon Ranch
by Aria Diethel
Summary: May Maple is devastated when her family decides to move out of Hoenn and into a new region called Aria as she leaves her best friends and her beloved boyfriend and enters the vast land of the countryside. Initially bitter about the move, a fated meeting will change her entire outlook on life as well as herself. Advanceshipping story, Ash x May AU (But with Pokémon!)
1. The Boy in the Tree

Hello everyone! So this is the first story I'm putting up on FF and I'm really excited to share it! I've been crafting this story in my head for years now and I'm determined to fully animate it in text. I know it may be a little OOC with the characters in all, but this is how I have conveyed the characters throughout my life :) I really hope that you enjoy it. This might sound super corny, but I hope this is a story that people can think of as wonderfully memorable. I'll try my hardest to complete it. This is an AU fic, but it still contains Pokémon and battles and stuff. I made up the Region of Aria :) Please read and enjoy!

Ship: Advanceshipping (Ash X May) xD

Ages of Characters so far mentioned:

May Maple - 16

Max Maple - 8

Caroline Maple - 38

Norman Maple - 41

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**Chapter 1: The Boy in the Tree**

Midnight painted the sky, settling its opaque navy palette upon the gentle-moving clouds. Seas of stars embellished the dark blue shade and created what looked like a glitter-scattered canvas. The environment was hush with a cool breeze whispering in the night and carrying verdant foliage away from the enormous trees surrounding the valley.

The car ride had been tumultuous. The family van had been packed to a maximum with enormous luggage and bags containing precious objects. In the front of the middle seats was a heavy cooler and on either side of it was a large piece of baggage. The ride would have been met with more respite if the incessant blabbering of Max's voice along with the millionth replay of the same DJ Mary track didn't all ring in May's ear at once. She tried hard to focus on the scenery before her eyes, but was interrupted by another declaration from her brother.

"If he had opened up with a surf move, then that Wartortle would have easily beaten that Magmar in one move!" He insisted eagerly. Max, a small, yet surprisingly outspoken and intelligent boy was indeed the embodiment of a true know-it-all with his constant voicing of opinion and a pair of oversized glasses on his tiny frame. Despite his cute youth, May couldn't help but sometimes feel the desire to push him into a lake.

"But he still won, didn't he?" chimed in a syrupy voice. May and Max's mother, Caroline turned her head from the frontal passenger's seat to smile at them. Always reliable, Caroline's kind personality was only catalyzed by her lovely heart-shaped face and cinnamon curls. It was a nice perk to know that May would one day resemble a beauty such as her.

"A win is a win Max, you can't argue with that!" laughed her husband, Norman, who drove the family van through the lush valley. Norman's large build and handsome face complimented his wife's beauty, along with his upbeat and humorous demeanor; he was a great role model and father to May and Max.

"Yes he can…" May scoffed. He stuck his tongue out at her and continued to go on about the battle tournament. She sighed with annoyance as she rested herself upon the arm of her seat, trying hard to block everyone else out of her mind.

May Maple was a bit more than the average sixteen-year old girl; she had light brown hair that reached a little above her shoulders and striking eyes of a lapis shade. Despite her age, she was a bit more petite than other girls and often viewed as 'cute' rather than 'gorgeous' or 'sultry', much to her dismay. She was dressed comfortably in a fitted red shirt and black shorts, accompanied by a smooth white mini-skirt. The outfit was topped off with her trademark bandana. It was literally something she had just 'thrown on' as she had been dreading the particular car ride for quite some time.

May continued to stare outside of her window dismally, wishing she had never set foot in the family van. It was one thing to ride in a car for nine hours with Max, but she couldn't get the prospect of driving away from her former home; her house; her friends. The only other thing good about the drive was the big sack of Poke Balls placed in front of her. Unfortunately, the Pokémon had to stay put for the ride due to the lack of free space what with the entirety of luggage and travel items. Caroline frowned as she noticed the dreary look on her face.

"Are you still upset, May?" she asked, hopeful for a more positive answer. May flicked her gaze to her, but said nothing and just looked straight ahead again.

"I know moving is hard, but we'll go and visit," her mother tried to reassure her, but to no avail. _I don't want to visit; I want to go back…_ She thought painfully in her head. She began to trace the reasons for their subsequent move; she didn't see one good thing about it for her. She looked down at the sack in front of her and so longed to let out at least one of her Pokémon. If only there wasn't such limited space.

The Maple family drove on to a new home. They had formerly been long-lived residents in the city of Petalburg. May and Max had grown up in the delightful city and their father had been the notable gym leader until one fateful battle had left Norman with major injury. Albeit his recovery, he was unable to fully meet his duties as the gym leader as he used to. Battles and training became strenuous, and it was becoming more apparent that age was finally settling on the once-vivacious Gym Leader. Despite the protests and examples of other much more aged Gym Leaders, May ultimately couldn't convince her father of staying in the city. Both she and Max knew their father's future intentions of seeking a quieter life with his wife and kids; however it was often dismissed as a common fantasy. In the end, their ultimate decision was to move out into the quiet countryside. The move was understandable to both May and Max; they knew they had to comply with what was best for the entire family.

Max had a shockingly amiable disposition about moving to a more forested environment; his detailed reasoning dealt with the fact that he would gain access to several types of new Pokémon that he couldn't observe in their old home. It was like him to see it in such a way. May however, was the most affected by the prospect of leaving Petalburg. She had lived there longer than her brother, and there she left her closest friends, including her boyfriend. She disliked every aspect of moving: A new house, a new setting, and not to mention having no one to talk to or spend time with other than her family and her Pokémon. It wasn't fair; she didn't see any appeal of living out in the countryside, in fact, it seemed like a downgrade from her former life.

Norman seemed to have picked up on his daughter's disappointment.

"A move may be hard, but sometimes, change can be the best thing, and besides, what have you got against the old country? Doesn't a ranch sound fun? We'll be getting in tons of new Pokémon," he beamed. May rolled her eyes.

"Don't you think the countryside is a little…boring? I mean, what about shops and restaurants and movies? Does the country have that?" she asked, hoping to win the argument.

"Actually, it does!" Caroline grinned.

Suddenly, the outside view changed as the van turned into a clearing with a big sign that read "Aria Town". The outer image soon showed dimly lit chained shops and restaurants, just as May had referenced, however these were much smaller and barren than what had made up Petalburg City. It was immensely tiny; the only truly notable thing about the town was a black, limestone fountain with lit up lights in the interior, making the water appear as if it were glowing. Caroline and Max marveled at the sight as opposed to May who only rolled her eyes again.

"Not really…" May sighed again, feeling even more discouraged by the pittance size of Aria Town.

They soon continued out of the town and back into the rich valleys of Aria, where flourishing summer greenery vividly appeared in sight. The vibrant green against the dark reminded May suddenly of the love she had left behind back at Petalburg. She couldn't get the somber image of her long-time boyfriend, Drew Rose, out of her head; he was by far the thing she missed most about her former home. She began to reminisce about the joyful times spent with him: The time when they had both ridden up the tallest hill in Petalburg together and viewed the sunset, the time in which they trained their Pokémon hard together and defeated a rival couple, and especially the time in which they had kissed under a full moon on her birthday. As she traced back to yesterday night, she remembered his faring words to her:

_"Hey, come on, don't be sad about this. Remember, we'll still be together, distance makes the heart grow fonder," he smiled as he put his arm around her. She looked up from a crumpled tissue. _

_ "Since when are you so deep?" she demanded tearfully. He couldn't help but laugh._

_ "Yeah, you're right. We're pretty much screwed," he chuckled. At first she looked at him deeply hurt, but couldn't help a creeping smile as she began to laugh with him. _

_ "Nah, I'm just kidding; we'll be alright, your family did say you'd visit, and we still have phone calling." He assured her. May sniffed a bit as she nestled into his arms further. _

_ "What if one of us forgets?" she asked. _

_ "That'll probably be me, but I'll make sure to call you at least three times a week…Or maybe two…One?" he asked. She laughed again and laid her head against his shoulder. _

_ "We'll stay strong, don't you worry about a thing…Even if you do become some old country bumpkin…" he grinned, sustaining a punch in the arm from her. The two huddled closer together, observing the sky above with pangs of hope. _

May looked down sadly as she remembered. He was the best thing in her life; the two had practically grown up together, catching and training Pokémon and traveling to new areas. Leaving him back home was the hardest thing for her, but she was intent on calling him within the week; that at least gave her something to look forward to.

"Hey, what do you know? We're already here!" cheered Norman. Everyone looked outside eagerly to see their new home, and May found herself utterly astonished at what she saw. Her previous vision of their new house was a shack of a barn with crumbling walls and debris surrounding it and beds of straw everywhere, but the dwelling before her was almost the complete opposite.

Before them stood a magnificent, log-cabin like, two-story house with a sturdy looking build and enormous driveway; the house stood in between chromatic flower beds and sat upon the cobblestone-strewn front yard. Leading up to the house was a stone stairway to a long porch and embedded on the side of the large house was a rocky chimney that practically lived in the clouds.

"Wow!" Max exclaimed. His eyes were wide with awe as he took in his new home. Even May was intrigued by its less-than-average appearance. Behind the large cabin house was a long lining of a wooden fence that seemed to be endless either way. The backyard had to be walloping, it WAS a ranch.

"W-what happened to living in a tiny barn house?" May asked. Norman laughed as he drove up into the clearing.

"I never said anything about living in a barn house; in the land of Aria, ranches are pretty much estates for humans and their Pokémon to grow. It's common to see homes like this these in this here. Now you're excited about this place, huh?" he said. Max nodded energetically while May just held her mouth open, dumbfounded at the true wonder of Aria.

"Let's unpack the luggage! Thanks to the movers, we'll settle in nicely with our furniture already moved in!" Caroline piped excitedly as she began to pull suitcases out one by one.

"I…guess so…" May said slowly, reaching over for her own luggage. The sack of Poke Balls suddenly caught her eye again then.

"Since we're here, I should let them out, they've been cooped up for so long as it is." she smiled for once, grabbing the sack.

"Come on out!"

With a down-fall of shiny Poke Balls and beams of light, seven of May's Pokémon emerged into the night, giving the atmosphere even more of a lift. There stood Blaziken, Beautifly, Skitty, Munchlax, Glaceon, Venasaur, and Wartortle, stretching and happily basking in the warmth of the outdoors.

"Good idea, May! They've been resting for quite a long time, and they'll certainly be helpful with unloading." Norman smiled as he released his own Pokémon , Slakoth, Vigoroth, and Slaking. They all quickly began to unload the cramped car, pulling out various belongings and heading straight for their new home. Venusaur, Slaking, Vigoroth, and Blaziken took much of the larger items whereas even those as tiny as Skitty pulled their share by dragging along the trash bags of food from the trip. Max and Munchlax helped one another lifting his duffle bag of belongings into the house as well as Caroline and Beautifly taking turns with coolers and blankets.

As May stepped along the cobblestone driveway dragging along her suitcase, she couldn't help but notice the true vastness of their new land. It was even more enormous than their gym and greenhouse combined, not to mention that the front lawn was already landscaped to a beautiful sea of anemone flowers and rose bushes, topped along with giant oak trees and hanging wisterias around the windows and doors of the cabin, or pseudo-mansion. Even so, a pretty yard and big house couldn't replace what she had back in Petalburg. But it _was_ a nice perk.

The inside of the house was an even more rewarding sight after such a monotonous drive. Her mother was right about the furniture; everything had been preset and looked simply astonishing. The front door led directly to a wide open living room space with dark colored, hard wood flooring. There was a long, crimson colored suede couch in the middle with a matching loveseat and a brown leather arm chair accompanying it in a square-shaped setting. The seating framed the lovely pine-green carpet with a rectangular glass coffee table in the center and an enormous flat-screened television back up against the wall in front of the setting. Underneath the television was a toasty-looking fireplace already packed up with an assortment of wood. The living room was so large, that different hallways could be spotted and a stair balcony peeked out from the top. The kitchen barely stood out as the rest of it was a hall away, but a small pub-like portion stood out, making it convenient for a night of leisure and movies.

"Oh cool!" Max cried as he ran around their new home. Norman flicked on the lights as the Pokémon followed and they all began to set the luggage and packages down. May too set aside her suitcase and widened her eyes at the sight of their new home, drawing in its beauty and oddly enough…_warmth._

"It's gorgeous! I knew this was a keeper, Norman," Caroline gushed lovingly as she stared at her new house. The two walked off to explore together towards the kitchen, some of the Pokémon in hot pursuit while the others dashed about to see the place. Soon, May stood alone in the foyer with the surplus of luggage.

"Am I the only one who actually misses home?" she scowled to herself. She sighed sadly and then turned around, stepping back outside. She disliked the notion of her family liking this place better than Petalburg. This wasn't home.

"So it's pretty and big, but it's nothing compared to Petalburg…nothing…" she said to herself doubtfully as the night sky slowly overtook the setting. It was a nice night. Drew was probably asleep by now, so calling him wouldn't be a good idea. She glanced back at the house to see even more windows light up; they were probably checking out all of the rooms. She sighed again, and found herself walking towards the backyard, following the small path of stones leading out to the enormous pasture.

May couldn't help but widen her eyes again at the view. Their backyard was three times the size of the battle field back at the Petalburg gym. The field was endless with a sea of night-shaded grass and framing brush and wood. In the far right corner, May noticed a small pond glistening against the moon. The place was almost perfect. Almost.

She stopped walking and just stood there, taking everything in. A new place, a new life; it all seemed so unfair; to leave everything she loved behind and start over in a brand new place. The new house was definitely a positive point; however, she couldn't stop thinking about being alone. That was the one thing she resented most: Being alone. Her mind began to sift through thoughts on her friends and what they would be doing tomorrow. Drew, Solidad, and Harley would most likely go out for more training. Brianna was sure to tag along. May pouted at the thought of Brianna drooling over Drew. If only she was there now…

Suddenly, she heard a loud rustle of leaves, breaking her thoughts. May looked around the field in alert, yet there seemed to be nothing in sight. It wasn't windy, and the sound had been abrupt. She turned back around to see if any of her Pokémon had followed, but there was nobody there. She gasped lightly as she heard the rustling sound again. There was definitely something; it was coming from above. She looked up slowly, finally noticing the enormous oak tree little ways behind the fence just cutting their vast acre of land off from the next grand portion. The tree was massive, with several twisting branches and huge extending limbs at the top.

May gazed in awe at the tree until she heard the rustling sound again. She whipped her eyes up to see a small, yellow creature dashing up along the numerous tree branches. Her heart settled upon realizing that it was just a Pokémon, however, she had never seen one like it back at home. It was a bit hard to see its distinct features in the dark, yet she made it out as it crawled up and finally settled upon the largest and longest branch on the tree, however, it was not alone. The yellow creature sat contently beside a large dark figure of what looked like a person, whom lied against the tree trunk with their hands clasped behind their head in a relaxed manner. May stepped back a bit, trying to make out the two figures. She was sure the larger one was a person. Her heart began to race. Whoever was in the tree could be dangerous. May bit her lip, wishing she had brought one of her Pokémon along with her.

The figure shifted a bit, causing her to jump back.

"Don't jump out of your skin," someone chuckled suddenly. It was the person in the tree. It was definitely a boy, judging by the sound of his voice. He sounded fairly young, but his voice was husky and calm. May settled down a bit, but glanced up at him questioningly. What was a boy doing in a tree so late at night? What was that Pokémon perched upon his head? Who was he?

"Pika!" the yellow figure squeaked. It sounded excited. The clouds suddenly began to unmask the night's full moon, emitting the silvery light to pour over the vast grassland, including the giant oak. The light now revealed the dark silhouette of a boy and the Pokémon. From what she saw, he had a sturdy build and wore a baseball cap.

"Beautiful, isn't it? He spoke again. May broke from her trance-like stare upon him and blinked in confusion.

"I…" she stammered. He chuckled again, but continued his gaze upon the sky.

"You can never get tired of Aria's full moon," he paused and then shifted his glance over to May.

"You're from that new family, aren't you? Nice to finally have a neighboring ranch. It's been a while. I'll tell you this, there's no place like Aria." He smiled. She could now make out his eyes, but that was it. His eyes were a fiery amber color, full of youth and valor. She didn't reply, but just watched him intently.

"Huh, I didn't think you'd believe me, after all, what's in the countryside?" he laughed. May narrowed her eyes. Who was this guy? He was pretty perceptive.

The boy sat upright suddenly and looked back up at the sky again.

"Hm, it's getting late. I'd better head on back," he then glanced back at May, "'Til next time…I'm sure we'll be seeing more of each other." he said. In a matter of seconds, he leaped out of the tree and disappeared into the dark.

"Pikachu!" the yellow Pokémon waved farewell to May and then scampered off after its master. May just stood there for a while, staring after the boy and his Pikachu. Was that boy her new neighbor? Norman had said that they would be moving in close to a neighboring ranch as a partnership, but she didn't think much of it other than believing they would be an elderly couple. Looking back at the oak, it was massive. It was so immense in size that it towered over both sides of the fence despite it being rooted on the other side.

May furrowed her eyebrows in frustration. Who was that boy anyway? He didn't even introduce himself or ask for her name. Then again, it was late at night and their meeting was accidental, consisting of his stargazing in a tree while she wandered aimlessly in her new backyard. But if he was her new neighbor, they were bound to meet again at some point. As she walked back over to the house, she decided she would reprimand him for not introducing himself formally the next time they saw one another.

The luggage was unpacked and brought into the house by the time May arrived back at the house. Her father and Max were seated at the round table in the kitchen, sipping on water and nibbling on the rest of the leftover snacks from the ride. Caroline was busy stowing her china sets and the rest of the dishes into the fresh cabinets.

"May! Where were you? Did you see your room?" Norman smiled as she took a seat at the table.

"Not yet, I was just checking out the backyard. It's not bad," she said as she grabbed a poffin from a box on the table.

"You ought to! They're all pretty big in space, and your mother and I even had a sitting window installed. You can see the entire ranch from it!" her father exclaimed. May smiled weakly.

"I love this place! Can you imagine all of the different types of Pokémon we'll see?" Max piped up as he gobbled up a fudge cookie.

"Not to mention my new granite countertops," Caroline sighed dreamily as she ran her hand across the smooth, golden countertop of the kitchen counters.

They all broke into conversation over the provisions of their new home, all except for May who just sat there quietly. Her mind was racing through thoughts; thoughts of Petalburg, thoughts of Drew, and thoughts of Aria. She then thought back to her meeting in the yard. Everything was different now. She knew she had to accept what was to come. It seemed that everyone else had come to terms with the move; she had better pick up her pace. May slowly shifted her gaze to nearby window, seeing the giant oak again. She was suddenly curious; curious about her new home, the people she would meet, the land, but most of all, she was curious about the boy in the tree.

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That's it for now, I definitely have more coming! I know it was a really slow opening, but I hope you guys continue to read it! I'm going to make it the best I can for my readers! Thanks so much to anybody who reads and reviews. I'm going to try my best with this story. I already have many of my future chapter drafts written out, I just need to process them :)

Thank you everyone, I'll update ASAP! 3


	2. Encounters

Hey guys! I'm so proud of myself for uploading sooner than I thought I would! I'm really liking the way its going so far :) I hope you guys enjoy it too! There definitely more to come! But for a good background explanation of things, keep in mind that this is an AU story. It still consists of a world of Pokémon though. In this particular fic of mine, this kind of dismisses the fact that everyone journeyed together and separates them more. They didn't all journey together in this fic, but they did travel. Like May, she has definitely been away from Petalburg, but this story centers around her moving into a more rustic, countryside unlike the cities she usually stays in. As for Ash, his background will be revealed more in depth as the story progresses. Until then, I really hope you enjoy this chapter! Thanks to all of my readers, reviewers, and followers!

Character Ages (I'm only going to put this up for the first couple of chapters and any chapters where there's a change in a significant character's age)

May Maple - 16

Max Maple - 8

Caroline Maple - 38

Norman Maple - 41

Ash Ketchum - 17

I know the ages are not canon in difference form one another, but it fits with my story! So I'll keep them as is :)

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**Chapter 2: Encounters**

_"So how's the new house? Do you like it?"_

_"Yeah, but it's not Petalburg."_

_"I'm sorry, May. But look on the bright side; you'll be coming to visit soon,"_

_"Yeah, in half a year…"_

_"Heh, miss me that much already, huh?"_

_"Don't tease,"_

_"I know, babe. I miss you too. It's been tough without you too,"_

_"I wish you were here, Drew,"_

_"Vice versa. Have you met anybody else so far?"_

_"…No, I haven't…"_

_"That's too bad. You're already the neighborhood creep?"_

_"No! You're such a jerk!"_

_"Haha, then get out more!"_

May jerked awake suddenly to the cacophony of rings from her alarm clock. She quickly turned it off and sat up in her bed, rubbing her eyes. She then rested her back against the baseboard of the bed. She had dreamt of her most recent conversation with Drew. He had only been able to call her once a week due to his busy schedule. It was that time that she treasured most. She sighed, ripped off her covers and got out of bed.

It had been three weeks already since their arrival in the Aria region. It was a busy three weeks as May and her family had literally spent every minute moving decorative pieces into the house as well as their own belongings. They had also obtained fresh livestock of Miltank, Mareep, and Togekiss. There were more Pokémon to be obtained, but for now, these were the set livestock. The barn was refurbished to allow more living space for them and the pond was cleaned up. Though kept very busy, May still found little with which to enjoy about her new home.

The rest of the family seemed to fairly be enjoying their new home. Norman and Caroline seemed more content than ever, with Norman caring for the new Pokémon and Caroline decorating the house to her liking. Even Max was enjoying himself with the new Pokémon, yet he still had yet to venture out into the wilderness of the countryside. Neither Max nor May seemed to have been able to go outside of their land vicinity for their greater bulk of work was there. They still had yet to explore, there just seemed to be so little time.

May ran her hand through her hair and slowly walked over to her enormous window, opening up the curtains and allowing in an enormous influx of light. Her room was brightened up instantly, shining light upon her queen bed and all of her stuffed animals lined up around. She had her own, dark wooded desk with a bulletin board holding her past ribbons, pictures of family and friends, and other materials. On the nightstand next to her bed was a picture of her and Drew.

May entered the bathroom and began to prep herself for the day, brushing her teeth, washing her face, and then entering the shower for a quick rinse. She sighed drearily. So far, the move had not had a positive impact on her life. She was constantly working, Drew rarely called, and she had not met anybody or seen anything. As soon as she finished showering, she quickly dried herself and primped her hair and face. May then changed from her pink pajama shorts and cami into a pair of blue jean shorts and a chartreuse-colored tank top with ribbon straps.

"May! Come on down! Breakfast!" she heard her mother call from downstairs.

"I'll be there in a second!" she replied and then quickly exited her room.

May entered the newly decorated kitchen to see Caroline frying pancakes on a large pan and Max and Munchlax supping on them at the round table.

"Morning May," Max muffled through a mouthful of syrup and pancakes.

"Munch munch!" followed Munchlax. May smiled at them and took her seat next to them, helping herself to two pancakes.

"So, the house refurnishing and decorating is nearly finished. I'm glad to see that you two have settled in quite well," Caroline perked as she turned the stove off and carried a new platter of pancakes over to the table.

"You bet I have. Mom, when can I go out to the woods? There've got to be hundreds of cool Pokémon there!" Max exclaimed. Caroline laughed.

"You certainly can't go alone. Your sister will take you when she can," she replied. May furrowed her eyebrows.

"No way! It's one thing having to babysit, but constantly hearing Max correct me and brag about how much he knows about Pokémon? Nope! He can play with his toys," she snarled. Max scowled at her while Caroline frowned.

"I hope you're not still upset about the move, May, we told you you could visit Petalburg. It's just not a good time right now." She said. May took a bite of her pancakes.

"It's never a good time…" she sighed. There was a long pause at the table before Caroline suddenly brightened up.

"I know! Why don't you go and take care the Miltank today? Your father will be in town all morning so he needs someone to do the job!" she suggested. May blinked at her before nodding slowly.

"Okay, I guess." It was at least something to do other than mount up paintings and arrange furniture. Caroline clapped her hands in delight.

"Alright then! Get right to it after breakfast!"

After she had finished her pancakes, May had been given the large bucket of Pokémon food and was pushed outside to go to the barn. She trudged over to the barn in struggle over the massive weight of the food. In an attempt to lighten the mood of the job, she had Skitty tag along and tossed her a bite of food every now and then.

"Why do I get stuck doing all of the heavy work? Dad could've easily fed them when he got back…And what's he doing in town anyway? This move is such a bust…" she groaned as she dragged the food bucket into the barn.

As she opened the door, she came to a sight of the cute faces of their three Miltank. Their names were Milly, Tawny, and Bess, named by Max respectively. May's expression softened as she glanced at them. They were awfully sweet and cute Pokémon and she had taken quite a liking to the livestock, though she was still wary of getting too close to them. She didn't know or care for them as much as her father did, so she knew little of their demeanors toward her.

"Moooo!" Miltank cried out happily at the sight of grub. She poked her head hungrily out of her stable while Skitty began to leap up mewing at her.

"Alright, alright, I'm getting to you!" May exclaimed as she tried hard to lift the bucket with both hands. She was having a bit of trouble trying to lift the entire container and instead spilled some onto the floor in front of Skitty.

"Nyaaa!" the pink kitten cried and then leaped up at May, knocking her and the bucket down.

"Skitty!" she shouted angrily. The pink Pokémon cried out again and then scurried out of the barn mischievously with a mouthful of the Miltanks' food.

"Skitty you get back here!" May yelled out after her again, bolting out of the barn in pursuit of her Pokémon.

Skitty shook her tail at May and then proceeded to scamper across the field with her master sheepishly following after. She then headed down toward the edge of the fence, much to May's exasperation.

"No Skitty! That's not our land! Come back!" she ordered, but to no avail.

"Nya!" Skitty mewed in reply and scurried under the fence into the neighboring territory. May quickly dashed over to the edge and reluctantly climbed over the fence, leaping at her Pokémon.

"I gotcha!" she yelled, gathering Skitty up into her arms. Skitty meowed bashfully, looking up at her master.

"You can't just trespass onto other peoples' territory Skitty. That's why we have the fence!" she scolded. But suddenly, Skitty stopped mewing and was looking straight ahead.

"What is it?" May asked, looking up and then freezing. Right in front of them stood an enormous, hulking Tauros. May's blood ran cold. Max had told her about Tauros. They weren't very friendly toward intruders or strangers, and they had an all-too obvious reputation for their 'Take Down' attack. She gulped; watching wide-eyed as the Tauros pawed his hoof backwards and then began to charge.

"Ahh!" she shrieked, clutching Skitty tightly in her arms and shielding her with her body. Even if she attempted to run, there was no way she could outrun the Tauros or even hope to deflect its attack with Skitty's attacks.

"Oh no oh no oh no," she mumbled under gritted teeth whilst clutching Skitty. She heard the Tauros roar angrily, and braced herself for the brunt of the attack.

"Whoa there, Tauros! Rapidash, use Body Slam!" somebody yelled suddenly. May opened her eyes in astonishment and quickly looked up to see an enormous Rapidash intercept the Tauros and roughly collide with it, sending it backwards. She stared in amazement at its majesty and beauty and then immediately noticed that there was someone atop the magnificent Pokémon.

She couldn't see him too well because of the overlapping flames, but she could see a small, yellow figure perched upon his shoulder. She then turned to see the Tauros get up and back away from the Rapidash and its rider.

"Go on now! Go back to the barn!" the voice yelled again. The Tauros snorted bitterly and then trotted off and away from them.

May just sat and watched in amazement at the beautiful horse Pokémon that now faced her. It was majestic and powerful looking, with orange and red flames blazing as its mane and tail. The Pokémon brayed loudly suddenly and she watched as the large figure lowered himself from the Rapidash. He stepped down gracefully and dusted himself off before turning to face the flabbergasted May. She widened her eyes at his appearance.

He was a fairly young man looking to be about seventeen or eighteen years old. He had dark, spiky black hair that was flitted handsomely across his burning amber eyes topped with a red and white baseball cap. The boy had an incredible build, towering over May at about six feet, three inches. Starkly visible muscles bulged from underneath his black button-up, revealing years of hard work and strenuous activity. The most notable thing about him was the shine in his eyes, a sort of optimistic passion that just glowed within him. On his shoulder was a small, cute yellow Pokémon with long ears, red cheeks, and a bolt-shaped tail. May continued to stare at him, awestruck by his burly stature and amiable expression. He wore a simple black button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows and a pair of dark gray jeans and brown boots. He took a step toward her, observing her for any injuries and then held out his hand.

"Are you alright, miss?" he asked. May suddenly recognized the husky voice and the fiery amber colored eyes. It was him! It was the boy in the tree from her first night in Aria.

"Y-yes, I'm fine, thank you…" she stuttered, taking his hand into her more miniscule one. He gently pulled her up and steadied her by holding her upright by her right shoulder. May was amazed by his strength as he was easily able to lift her back up. He checked her for more damage.

"You're not hurt anywhere?" he asked. It took May a little while to shake her head as she was still mesmerized by his overall presence. He was just so…strong.

"I'm alright, really," she assured. The boy let go of her finally and then let out a big, alleviated sigh.

"What a relief! I'm sorry about Tauros, he's a rough one!" He exclaimed. The yellow Pokémon on his shoulder suddenly began to wave its tiny hands at May.

"Pika! Pikachu!" it squeaked eagerly. The boy laughed and scratched the creature on its head.

"Pikachu thinks so too," he chuckled as the yellow creature began to make a face similar to Tauros'. May couldn't help but smile at the cute Pokémon.

"Nya nyaa!" Skitty suddenly cried out and waved one of her paws at the Pokémon called Pikachu. The boy then turned back to May and held out his hand.

"Hi, my name's Ash Ketchum," he smiled, "and this here is my best buddy, Pikachu," he motioned toward his yellow Pokémon who chirped happily in response. May looked at his hand and then held hers out to him.

"I'm May, and this is Skitty…We've actually met before," she said. There was no doubt about it; he was that same boy in the tree with the fiery amber eyes and the husky voice. As soon as she mentioned it though, he looked confused.

"Really?" he asked, playfully unconvinced. May narrowed her eyes at him as Skitty wriggled in her grasp.

"You were that boy in the tree, that night we first came here," she finally revealed. Ash scratched his head questioningly and then opened his mouth in realization.

"Oh, yeah! You're the new neighbors' kid! Funny, I thought you'd be a guy when I first heard about your family. I never expected a cute little city girl like yourself, "he smirked, but his tone was kind. May's mouth fell open and she blushed slightly at the word 'cute'. He chuckled again and continued.

"Looks like I owe you another apology for not introducing myself formally back then. I'm Ash Ketchum, my family and I own the neighboring ranch, in other words, this one. As you probably know, we're pretty much partners, your family and mine. We haven't partnered up on a ranch in a while now. I never thought they'd have someone as dainty-looking as you picking up heavy slack," he laughed. May pouted in frustration.

"Dainty-looking? I'm not that small! And for your information, I was actually working diligently feeding my livestock when my Skitty decided to take a detour here." She stated. Ash softened his expression.

"Don't get upset, I'm just messing with you! It's great to finally meet you face to face, May," He enthusiastically grabbed a hold of her hand and shook it firmly. His hands were balmy and calloused as May felt them. He obviously worked very hard. But there was something else, she felt almost warm holding his hand. It wasn't until he cleared his throat that she finally let go of it hastily, blushing in embarrassment. She then stuck her nose up and folded her hands.

"Well, Ash Ketchum, I don't appreciate your 'messing around' much. I believe people should be more considerate during an initial meeting," she declared. Ash smiled softly and stepped up closer to her.

"How about I make it up to you? What do you say I help you out with whatever work you have and then give you a tour of the countryside? I'm sure a city girl like you would enjoy it," he winked. May widened her eyes.

"What? You want to give me a tour?" she exclaimed in surprise. He was certainly coming off strong! Or was it mostly May's awe of him that clouded her perspective of him actually just trying to be friendly? May bit her lip anxiously, confused at what she was feeling. He was well attractive alright, but she couldn't forget about Drew. She was just mesmerized by his appearance and demeanor. That was all. Nothing more. So then why did she suddenly feel so nervous about the prospect of befriending him? He obviously held only good intentions. Maybe it was just the sharp feeling of relapse after not seeing anybody but her family and Pokémon for three weeks. Yes, that was it. It had to be.

Ash gave her a funny look and then nodded.

"Yeah, sure, why not? We're neighbors now, so I might as well show you around. It'll be fun, come on," he assured. May looked down hesitantly. On one hand, she would finally get out of being cooped in the house, but on the other hand, she barely knew Ash. All she knew was that they were neighbors. Drew did encourage her to get out more.

"Okay…" she finally agreed. Ash beamed and quickly grabbed hold of Rapidash.

"Great! Let me just put Rapidash back in her stable and we'll get to it then!" he said eagerly. May nodded weakly and stared after him as he turned tail with Rapidash and walked her away slowly. As he sauntered away, she just couldn't help but feel strangely drawn to him. He was broad shouldered, strong, and kind. While he was gone, May continued to remain pensive about him.

As soon as Ash got back from the stables, he and May set off for her barnyard. Pikachu and Skitty had seemed to hit it off well, playing and chasing each other in pursuit of their masters. Ash and May managed to keep a steady conversation going along the way as they ventured across the fence.

"So what kinds of livestock have you guys gotten so far?" Ash queried as they climbed over the fence.

"We don't have that many actually, just three Miltank, five Mareep, and four Togekiss. I only have to feed the Miltank today though. Dad said he's gotten a couple of ranch hands to tend to the other things," she replied sheepishly at their pittance of Pokémon. Ash laughed and clasped his hands behind his head in a relaxed manner.

"That's alright. We didn't start out with that many Pokémon when we first built it. But Miltank are easy to take care of. You've just got to be very gentle and calm with them, they scare easily." said Ash. May sighed in relief at the notion of easy work. She then looked up at Ash as they neared the barn.

"Ash?"

"Yeah?"

"What were you doing in that tree that one night anyway? I've never seen—er I mean, I've never come across you there since then." May said whilst reopening the barn doors. Ash's expression appeased to a calmer look.

"I was stargazing. The night of the full moon's the best time to do so too; it's a tradition that Pikachu and I share," he explained.

"Pikachu!" the yellow Pokémon squeaked in agreement. May raised one eyebrow at him. He stayed up that late just to stargaze? She had to admit, the sky did truly look grand that night.

"What's so special about the full moon though? More stars?" she asked. Ash shook his head.

"Not really. In Aria, it's said that on the night of a full moon, you can receive something special." May cocked her head in confusion.

"I don't get it…"

"Well, neither do I," May deadpanned as he said this. Ash then gave her a kind look.

"But I intend to receive that 'special' thing," he stated. He then opened up the barn doors fully to meet the faces of Milly, Tawny, and Bess, who were mooing hysterically and reaching their heads out toward the fallen food supply. May gulped and hastily began to pick up the fallen food pieces, scooping them back up into the bucket.

"No need to be tense, remember, be calm around them. They'll trust you more easily and feeding them will be a synch," Ash reminded her. He helped her clean up the mess of food and then lifted up the entire bucket with ease. May stared in amazement at his apparent strength, for he didn't even struggle to hold the massive food supply.

"Alright, feeding time!" He exclaimed as he distributed portions of food to each Miltank. He gently loaded their food bins in their stables and called for May to come closer.

"Here, feeding them manually is the best way to get them to trust you better; take this," he then handed a small piece of Pokémon food to May and motioned for her to slowly hold it out to Milly.

"She's not going to get scared, is she?" she asked nervously.

"Not unless you frighten her, no," Ash assured her. May gulped and then held out the Pokémon food in her hand towards Milly, who stared blankly at it at first. She then sniffed it a little bit, and finally engulfed it within her mouth, munching happily upon it. May's expression brightened up immediately.

"I did it!" she beamed. Ash grinned.

"See? Easy stuff; you just have to stay calm." He said. May nodded, smiling and the two continued to tend to the Miltank, feeding them, brushing them, and cleaning up their stables. Ash guided May effectively along the way, helping her to get comfortable with the Miltank and then showing her different ways to care for them and make sure they stayed in top condition.

"Make sure you brush their fur in one direction too, they get uncomfortable when their fur is bristled outward," he reminded. While he was showing her the correct stroking patterns, the barn doors suddenly creaked open, causing May to jump.

"Well well, what do we have here? May actually volunteering to do work?" it was Norman, who stood in the doorway chuckling.

"Dad!" May exclaimed. Norman smiled and her and then approached her, widening his eyes upon seeing Ash.

"So you've finally met my daughter, eh Ketchum?" he inquired amiably. Ash shrugged coolly and then turned to face Norman, holding his hand out.

"Afternoon, sir," he said politely. Norman laughed and shook his hand roughly.

"I'm glad to see May's finally stepped out of her room," he said.

"_Dad,_" May hissed in embarrassment. Norman scratched his head and shrugged apologetically. May straightened herself up and then looked at her father.

"We're pretty much finished here. Ash was just giving me some pointers," she said. Norman nodded.

"Well then, thank you Ash, I don't know how May would've fared without your help," he winked at him whilst May groaned in annoyance. Ash just laughed and shook his head.

"She'll take good care of the Pokémon, it's obvious she cares about them," he glanced at her with the same kind look in his eyes. May blushed a bit in embarrassment and wistfully thanked him.

"Well, since we're done here, what do you say I give you that tour now?" Ash inquired as he set the brushes back on the shelves. May's expression brightened up at the prospect and she nodded ardently.

"A tour of Aria? You don't say, why don't you bring Max along with you, May? He's been pretty eager to get out for a while!" said Norman. May froze and whirled around to face her father.

"Max? I don't think—"

"Sure he's welcome to come along, I don't mind, do you May?" Ash asked. May narrowed her eyes in a disgruntled fashion and had to force herself to nod for her father.

"Nope…" she said under clenched teeth.

"Great then! May, I'm giving you the day off. You three have fun now!" Norman beamed and then headed right out of the barn. May sighed in a vexed tone, welcoming the prospect of Max and his keen ability to make a fool out of her. This was especially unneeded in the presence of Ash. But why did she suddenly feel nervous about him anyway? They weren't necessarily friends. But the most baffling question was: why did she feel this sudden urge to be alone with Ash?

"Ready to go?" he asked cheerfully as he gathered up Pikachu. May gazed at him thoughtfully and nodded.

"Yeah, let's go get Max…" she trailed off, feeling a pang of irritation start to cloud her mind. Whatever attachment she felt to Ash would surely be severed by Max soon enough. There was no need to worry about what he thought of her anyway, they were merely neighbors. Just neighbors…

* * *

Hahaa! So May is having trouble understanding why she feels drawn to Ash upon their second encounter. She obviously admires his bod, but there's just something

else! And now Max is tagging along for the venture around the wilderness of Aria! Lol, I'm overdoing it. I know I made Ash's build a little OOC, but he's a seventeen

year old boy who has been working at a ranch with huge Pokémon. I had to make him a muscular teenage heartthrob. And plus, I thought it would be cute to make

May small and Ash big and muscular. I love relationships like that :) Anyways, I hope you guys liked it! Stay tuned for the next chappie!


	3. Tour de Aria

Here's the next chapter! Remember, this is an AU fic, so expect things out of the ordinary :) I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

**Chapter 3: Tour de Aria**

It was one thing to have to take her pesky little brother with her on a hike, but to have to wait several minutes for him to get himself ready was practically intolerable. May sighed irritably with her arms folded, waiting impatiently in the foyer of their house.

"Hurry up, Max! Or we'll leave you behind!" she shouted. Ash, who was sitting in the chair near the doors, gave her a disarming smile only to be met with a vexed scowl from her. Caroline suddenly walked into the foyer with a tray of Beautifly-shaped cookies and headed toward Ash, smiling sweetly.

"Ash, would you like a cookie?" she offered.

"Sure, thank you," he said as he lifted one off of the tray and took a savoring bite.

"They're delicious!" he exclaimed. Caroline beamed proudly and then turned to the pouting May, holding out the tray to her.

"May, what's the matter? I thought you were all going to go for a walk around the woods," she said as her daughter grabbed a cookie and gobbled it up crossly.

"Max is taking forever! We've been waiting for ten minutes now!" she hissed as she reached over for another cookie. Caroline looked over at Ash who shrugged meekly and sighed.

"Come on Max! Get a move on, your sister and her friend aren't going to wait forever!" she called.

"I'm coming, I'm coming! I had to get my camera and journal!" a voice shouted back suddenly. Max finally emerged at the top of the stairs and raced down excitedly with a green backpack strapped to him.

"Took you long enough!" May growled as he came to meet her. He stuck his tongue out at her and then his eyes fell upon Ash. He raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"Who are you? You look familiar." he demanded.

"Max! Use your manners!" Caroline chided hotly. Max pouted at his mother, embarrassed.

"Hi, I'm Ash, I live in the neighboring ranch," said Ash as he stood up to meet Max. He naturally towered over Max, who was puny compared in size.

"Whoa, you're a pretty big guy! How old are you?" he asked, awestruck by Ash's stature. He chuckled in response.

"I'm seventeen," he replied. May's eyes widened, her mouth full of cookie.

"You're seventeen?" she muffled through a mouthful of sugar and chocolate.

"I really taught them better manners; I did," Caroline sighed in disappointment. May scowled at her mother and then turned back to Ash. He was only seventeen, yet he was so strong, and close to her age. They would've been schoolmates if he had lived in Petalburg. Max snickered mischievously.

"Are you May's new boyfriend?" he teased, tugging on his arm. May's cheeks flashed red in humiliation.

"Max!" she shouted angrily. Ash smiled uneasily, aware of the blatant awkwardness of the situation.

"Uh, no, Max. We're just friends is all," he stated calmly. May grimaced at Max in frustration.

"Max, you know I'm with Drew!" she snarled.

"Drew?" Ash inquired. Max shook his head.

"Just her androgynous boyfriend. He's obsessed with roses," Max said bleakly. May's jaw dropped, horrified. Ash just blinked in surprise for a moment and then burst out into laughter while Caroline shook her head discontentedly.

"Ah, so you've got a boyfriend back home, huh? Well that explains why you seemed so sour," Ash gazed over at May who was extremely red now. Caroline giggled and then patted her daughter on the back.

"May's been a bit homesick, that's all. It's hard to leave your friends behind," she said sweetly. Ash nodded.

"Believe me, I know…" he responded. May's expression softened a bit at them, but then she glowered at Max.

"Yeah, unfortunately, you didn't have any to leave behind in the first place, so there!" she barked. Max folded his arms at her.

"Yeah? Well at least I know the difference between 'amber' and 'ember'!" he retorted.

"Alright, you two! That's enough! Now's not the time to be fighting, aren't you supposed to be on your way now?" Caroline intervened.

"Yeah, it's going to get dark soon, we should head on out," Ash stepped in as well. Max folded his arms.

"She started it…" he mumbled whilst grabbing a handful of Beautifly cookies.

"Did not!" May hissed as they walked out of the door with Ash.

"Try to keep them out of trouble, Ash!" Caroline called, with a hint of anxiety in her eyes. Ash laughed nervously and scratched his head.

"I'll do my best!" he replied, and they were all out the door

When Ash, May and Max had stepped outside, they were happily greeted by Pikachu and Skitty, who ran up to them instinctively.

"Pika! Pikachu!" Pikachu cried out excitedly. Max's jaw dropped upon seeing him.

"Oh my gosh! It's a Pikachu! A real Pikachu!" he hollered. He ran up to it eagerly and closely observed it.

"Red cheeks, long ears, a distinctive yellow coat; It's really a Pikachu! And it's so cute!" Max beamed and he quickly held out a cookie for him. Pikachu chirped happily and took the cookie, nibbling intently on it.

"His favorite food is ketchup," Ash said as they walked up to Max and Pikachu. Max turned around excitedly.

"This is your Pikachu? You're so lucky!" he said in awe. Pikachu and Skitty began to share the cookie as they followed after their masters and Max.

"I take it that you know a lot about Pokémon, Max," said Ash as they left the front yard and began to walk along a smooth path paved with vibrant green grass and anemone flowers.

"I love Pokémon! I have every region's Pokédex information guide and a whole bunch of documentaries! Not to mention, I've recorded over a hundred Pokémon battles!" he exclaimed enthusiastically.

"He could marry them…" May mumbled sarcastically. Ash laughed and took the lead.

"Battling…I used to do some battling with my own Pokémon…" he suddenly trailed off whilst speaking. May furrowed her eyebrows in confusion at his sudden allayment of expression. Max, however, took no notice of this and instead opened his mouth in wide awe.

"_You _used to battle? That's awesome! Why'd you ever stop? Or do you still battle?" Max inquired eagerly. Ash remained quiet for a bit, causing May to stir uncomfortably.

"Stop asking him so many questions, Max. You're bothering him!" she scolded. Max frowned and Ash just laughed.

"That's alright. I still battle sometimes, Max. I guess I had more important things to do, that's all," he smiled at them. May wrinkled her eyebrows again skeptically. She barely knew him, but there must have been more to the story, or he wouldn't have been so pensive. She then took a moment to take in her surroundings.

May looked around, wonderstruck by the beauty of the land. They had only ventured little ways away from the cabin house, but there was so much to see: the grass rippled an emerald sheen spotted with a chromatic collection of flowers. Anemones, daisies, tulips, and asters were strewn over the land unevenly, but beautified the grassy plain. There was a thick, paved path bordered by tall oaks, balsa, and spruce trees with verdant leaves softly fluttering to the floor. From where she was, May could make out different patches of land. On one area, she spotted a thick weald of woods, and on another, an enormous plain with bodies of water she assumed to be lakes. She let out a dreamy sigh, awestruck by Aria's beauty. May suddenly stopped, and shook her head vigorously. She wasn't supposed to be thinking like that. Her real home was Petalburg, and it would always be the most important to her. Wouldn't it…?

"This is the main path of the countryside. The different path directions are known as forks. For instance, going east, you'll be heading down the East Fork. If you go down the East Fork, you'll be heading towards Relique Weald, which is the name of the woods, and if you go along the West Fork, you'll be going to Isle Lyonesse, a far plain with lots of lakes and a small forest. North along this path is called the North Fork. I you head out this way, you're going to reach town and if you head down the South Fork, where we live, you'll head into more farmland and houses and then finally reach Mount Sereno. The South Fork is where most of the community lives, but you'll see some people living in the other Forks. They're primarily Pokémon grounds though, so we try to steer clear of taking over their habitats." Ash explained.

"When are we going to see some Pokémon?" Max whined, less-than-amused by the beautiful surroundings. May groaned at his bleakness.

"Oh, we'll see Pokémon all right. I'm surprised you haven't seen any now, you've been here for how long?" asked Ash playfully.

"Three weeks, but we've been pretty much stuck home fixing everything up." May answered. Ash grinned.

"Then you're in for a great treat, Max. Let's head into Relique Weald," he then continued to lead them, while Pikachu and Skitty followed along and played together simultaneously.

As they walked along the main path, Ash went on explaining the broad vicinities of Aria. It was a very vast region at apparent, but there was so much more to it. It seemed to be a place full of spirit and legends, a place for pure adventure. She hated to admit it, but the region was slightly growing on her. Slightly. Then May looked over at Ash, he walked briskly with his shoulders up high. They looked incredibly strong, implying years of heavy lifting. But that couldn't just be it; he did say he used to battle. Maybe he was a skilled trainer. He _was _able to control his barbaric Tauros, and that Rapidash of his was extremely complacent. Compared to his Pokémon, May's Pokémon seemed a bit more unruly. All she knew was that Ash seemed to have enormous command and influence.

May had to admit that she was beginning to like Ash, as a friend. From her time with him, he was calm, yet bold and blunt, and there was a sort of sweetness to him. He was definitely patient, as seen with her and Max's bantering situation. Ever since that first night by the oak, she had felt this strange connection with him, but she certainly wouldn't let that even touch her relationship with Drew. That itself was the most special thing to her.

"Wow! Look! A Swalot! And there! It's a Farfetch'd!" Max exclaimed. May immediately looked up and her jaw dropped. It was Pokémon. Pokémon everywhere, from Jumpluff, to Sentret, and there were so many of them! Several of them, May had never even seen in her life. It was a definite sight.

"There are so many! I have to take pictures!" Max quickly rummaged through his backpack and pulled out a small, blue digital camera. He began to impetuously snap photos of every Pokémon he saw and soon became exhausted himself.

"Wow…so…many…" he panted. Ash laughed while May shook her head.

"These are just the grassland Pokémon, wait until you see the rest of them," he chuckled. May smiled a little as she watched Max and Ash walk ahead down toward Relique Weald. Max was certainly becoming more attached to Ash. He was never that enthusiastic with anyone back in Petalburg, not even Drew. In fact, she couldn't really remember when Drew ever really even spoke to Max other than on nights when she'd have him over for dinner. May widened her eyes in horror. She was comparing Drew to Ash again. She clenched her fists in annoyance. She loved Drew, and she liked Ash. They only met this morning! Well, technically, three weeks ago, but she and Drew went very far back. They had known each other since the age of ten. They traveled around to the famous Hoenn cities and competed in several Pokémon contests together. That's what May used to do back home in Petalburg. She was a skilled Pokémon Coordinator; however, she had only traveled to the cities in Hoenn. She could never bring herself to travel to a region without Drew. And now that had been broken by her forced move to Aria.

May and Drew did stop competing in Pokémon Contests for a little while thought, but to spend more time together. They had always planned to go back and try their hands at the Hoenn Grand Festival again, as neither of them had won their first one. Throughout their time together, they had grown exceptionally close. They were in love; or at least, she thought so. She was a little upset with him at the moment though. Throughout her three week settling period, Drew had only managed to call her twice. She understood he was busy with training and appeal devising, but he could have found time to call her more than two times. She felt a pang of apprehension when she thought back to Brianna, her 'friend' and Drew's biggest fan. Brianna portrayed herself as shy, timid, and bashful, yet May didn't buy a hint of it, although it was mostly out of slight intimidation. Brianna had an obvious affinity for Drew, which frustrated May. But there was no way she and Drew would ever do anything behind her back. Suddenly, May felt lightheaded.

"May, are you alright? You're walking awfully slowly," Max suddenly broke into her thoughts, causing her to jump.

"Oh, y-yes! I'm fine, just a little tired, that's all!" she hastily replied. Ash stopped and gave her a concerned look.

"If you're tired, we can turn back," he said. May vigorously shook her head again.

"No, no! I'm completely fine! Let's keep going!" she smiled nervously. Ash and Max shrugged and they continued on. May let out a relieved sigh, and followed behind them.

Ash was so considerate. She was surprised he'd stop for her at the slightest peep. It was a bit different with Drew. He would just tease her until she became ruffled and went lengths to prove him wrong. She had never really thought much of it until now. And it was bad because she was comparing Ash and Drew again. May sighed in exhaustion over her thoughts. She never knew Ash would make her think so much.

"Here we are!" Ash exclaimed, penetrating May's thoughts once again. She was so pensive that she hadn't even noticed the change of scenery around her. They were almost completely surrounded by enormous trees that towered over them. It was certainly darker than the grasslands, but it was sublime in appearance. There were large wisteria trees, draping the woods with purple flowers and generating an elegant aroma. They wandered in farther, seeing more greenery and more flowered trees along the way. It was dusky, but breathtaking.

"It's so beautiful…" May murmured as they continued walking with the Pokémon following suit.

"Look at all of the Pokémon!" Max gasped as a flock of Butterfree passed by. A small group of Caterpie and Wurmple slugged along as well as Stantler leaping deeper into the brush of the woods. Ash was right; Aria was practically home to all Pokémon known in existence!

"This is so cool, Ash! Do you get to come here all of the time?" Max asked excitedly as he began to snap more photos.

"Occasionally, when I have time to train," he asserted. Max whirled around to face him, his eyes wide.

"Training? So you do still battle!" Max declared, pointing his figure at Ash, who just smiled sheepishly and scratched his head.

"A little. When I have time at least," said Ash. Max beamed at him and then suddenly narrowed his eyes at him.

"You do seem familiar…" he trailed off as Ash and May began to continue on and quickly sped up to meet them.

"You really love Pokémon, Max. Do you have any of your own?" Ash asked him.

"No…Not yet…" Max sadly pouted. Ash gave him soft look.

"That's alright. I'll tell you what, later on, after your family's fully settled and I've shown you most of the woods, let's go catch you one," he grinned. May gasped.

"You're going to catch him a Pokémon?" she queried.

"Obviously not now, but we can do it. He seems to be pretty responsible," Ash replied. May groaned. Ash still had a lot to learn about Max. But Max was just trembling with excitement.

"You're really going to catch me a Pokémon? This is so cool! You're the best, Ash!" he exclaimed happily. May gazed at them in amusement. She had not seen Max this excited since the day Norman had allowed him to watch one of his gym battles back at Petalburg. In Hoenn, Max didn't exactly have many friends. That was one of the reasons why he was such an avid bookworm. It was hard for him to get along with others due to his more mature demeanor. It was nice to see him take a liking to someone who wasn't a Pokémon or a family member.

Max leaped around excitedly, poking through bushes and shrubs to find more Pokémon.

"Which one should I pick? There are so many! Maybe a Caterpie, no wait—A Natu! I don't know, there are so many to choose from!" he chirped excitedly.

"Max, you don't want to go rummaging through the undergrowth, you never know when a Pokémon could—"he was interrupted by a strange buzzing sound. May backed away, feeling uneasy while Max's expression became confused.

Suddenly, an enormous flying Pokémon bolted up from the bush in front of Max, causing him to fall back in shock. An enormous, bee-like Pokémon hovered before him, with menacing red eyes and sharp, needle arms pointed right at him. The buzzing sound was now harsher, and the Pokémon did not look at all pleased. It raised a needle arm, prepared to attack.

"Max!" cried May as she lunged for him, but Ash beat her to it at an incredible speed, gathering Max up into his arms.

"It's a Beedrill! Quickly, get back!" he shouted as he lowered Max to the ground next to May and then turned quickly to face the Beedrill.

"Let's go, Pikachu!" he called out to the little yellow Pokémon who bolted upright to his master.

"Pikachu!" it cried in anticipation, readying itself for attack. May watched in amazement at Ash's amazing speed. But it was the look in his eyes that astonished her most. He didn't look concerned or fearful, but he looked passionate. His amber eyes burned with anticipation and his mouth was curving into a confident smirk.

"Pikachu, use thunderbolt!" he commanded. Pikachu obeyed swiftly, letting out a roar and then emitting flashing yellow sparks from its body.

"PIIIKAAACHUUUU!" it bellowed as an enormous flash of lightning struck the hissing Beedrill, causing it to buzz in agony. When the attack was over, all that was left of Beedrill was a smote bug, who fluttered away feebly. Ash pumped his fist excitedly.

"Great job, Pikachu! You were incredible!" he glowed proudly. Pikachu scratched his head, laughing in embarrassment and modesty. May and Max just stood there with their jaws dropped.

"That. Was. AWESOME!" Max yelled out with gleaming eyes. He jumped over to Ash and began to tug at his arm again.

"You and Pikachu were so cool, Ash! You took that Beedrill down like it was nothing! I can't believe I got to see you battle live!" he gushed as his eyes sparkled in fascination. While Ash just responded to him modestly, May just stood there staring at him. In one quick move, he had managed to keep her and Max out of harm's way AND fight off an angry Pokémon. Well, more of scare away than fight. Even his tolerance of Max's incessant chatter and inquiry was admirable.

Ash then turned to them with a more serious look in his eyes.

"Are you guys alright though? We shouldn't poke around the woods so much, it startles Pokémon and some of them can get aggressive, so it's best to keep to yourself." He advised. May nodded bleakly, barely listening to him. Ash patted Max on the head and then turned around.

"I think that's enough excitement for today, why don't we call it quits and go home? It's starting to get dark," he suggested amiably. Max groaned in disappointment but then nodded.

"Okay…But we have to come here again!" he quickly asserted. Ash laughed and nodded.

"Sounds like a plan. What about you, May? You ready to go home?" he asked gently. May, still a bit spacey just looked at him before shaking her head quickly and nodding.

"Yes, yes of course! Let's get home before it gets too dark!" she exclaimed. Ash nodded and then allowed Pikachu to leap up onto his shoulders while May picked Skitty up and held her in her arms. Ash took the lead again and they began to head in the opposite direction in which they came. May and Max followed suit quietly, with Max pondering deep in thought.

"What is it, Max?" May asked him quietly. He suddenly stopped and then his eyes grew large.

"That's where I remember him from!" he said suddenly. May raised an eyebrow.

"Who, Ash?" she asked doubtfully as she looked back at the broad-shouldered boy walking a few paces ahead of them. Max nodded intently.

"That's Ash Ketchum! He's a famous Pokémon trainer! I've seen him on television! He competed in the Indigo League, the Silver Conference, the Ever Grande, and the Lily-Of-The-Valley Conference! He always managed to make it up to the top few! He was even asked to be a Battle Frontier Brain! He's a master trainer!" he exclaimed. May blinked in disbelief and then looked over at Ash, who luckily couldn't hear their conversation from his distance.

"Ash? That Ash right in front of us?" she inquired doubtfully. It wasn't easy for her to believe that a charming, teenage ranch boy had such a high trainer status. She had never even heard of him. Then again, she was completely immersed in the Pokémon Coordinator world and rarely involved herself in Pokémon Battles and tournaments. However, Max nodded, his eyes sparkling again.

"There's no doubt that's him. The way he battled, the way he is with his Pokémon, his age, his NAME! I can't believe he didn't even tell us! I'm gonna confront him! It's so cool, I can't believe it!" he exclaimed excitedly and darted forward to meet Ash, but was restrained by a rough pull by May.

"Max, no! You can't confront him for not bragging about himself!" she scolded. Max looked at her in confusion.

"What do you mean? Why wouldn't anybody want to talk about achievements like his? They're incredible! I just want to know what made him retreat to crummy ranch work," he said. May glowered at him irritably.

"Because asking him something like that is extremely insensitive and impolite! Don't just call his work 'crummy'! Look, from what I've gotten to know about Ash—"

"You haven't even known him for a day,"

"Forget that! From what I've gotten to know about him, he doesn't seem like the type who likes to brag about himself too much. He's modest, and we should respect that. There's more to Ash than just what we've seen. So don't go bothering him for no reason," she warned. Max looked at her blankly for a second and then burst out laughing. May turned red and wrinkled her eyebrows.

"What? What's so funny?" she demanded.

"Since when did you become so sentimental and understanding? Especially to anybody BUT Drew! You're usually such an airhead!" he chortled. May scowled at him derisively.

"Airhead? You take that back! I'm just as smart as you are! Smarter, actually! Because I'm older!" she yelled. They then broke out into another argument, exchanging volatile insults with one another incessantly. Ash sighed and turned around, shaking his head at them with a smirk.

"Hey now, calm down guys, no need to be arguing. We're almost home, let's try and get there without any commotion, okay?" he suggested calmly. May and Max immediately stopped their bickering and pouted in frustration. May looked back up at Ash, who was now petting his Pikachu between the ears and chuckling kindly with it. She then shifted her gaze down at her now sleeping Skitty, who was nestled cutely in her arms. All she could of though, was how good Ash was with Pokémon, and Drew never even once crossed her mind the whole way home.

It was late in the evening by the time the trio got back to the cabin house. The sun was just setting below the horizon, creating vast, glowing orange and red waves. The setting was so peaceful, May was almost sad that they had even left Relique Weald. For some strange reason, she longed to see the sunset from the other forks of Aria, even after she had repeatedly told herself not to become too attached to this place.

Max immediately ran toward the house, but then stopped short, and ran up to Ash.

"Ash, thanks for today. It was awesome! Can we go back soon? I can't wait to get my first Pokémon!" he said cheerfully. Ash laughed and nodded gently, patting him on the head.

"Sure thing, Max. We'll go back and catch you that Pokémon." He winked. Max grinned excitedly, said his goodbyes and the raced back into the house, leaving Ash and May alone out in the cobblestone driveway.

"So what do you think of Aria now? Nothing like the city, eh?" Ash asked amiably. May turned to face him with and gently smiled.

"Absolutely nothing like the city. It was really…beautiful…" she trailed off as she remembered the beautiful flowers and all of the Pokémon. Ash laughed his charming laugh again and then folded his arms.

"So I take it that you're starting to like this place, huh?" May bit her lip and gave him a weak smile.

"Well…I still miss Petalburg like crazy, but…I guess—"

"Ha! I knew you'd like this place. Believe me, I felt just like you did when I first moved here. Then I really learned how to look at it. This place is really special to me now," he looked up at the sunset as he said this, and May saw that look in his eyes again; that look of passion.

"When did you first move here?" she asked. Ash was silent for a moment, but finally replied to her.

"I was a lot younger than I am now, probably Max's age. I didn't adjust too quickly though. It took a little time to get used to the country. But now, I feel like it's really home." He said, gazing at May kindly. This caused her to blush a bit. He stepped up closer to her.

"I'm really glad you had a good time though. What do you say we make another arrangement?" he smirked. May turned even redder and found it hard to keep her eyes on him.

"A-arrangement?" she stuttered.

"Yeah! You're new here; you ought to get to know the place as well as the people. A couple of friends and I are getting together tomorrow in the deeper part of South Fork. I'd like for you to meet them," he proposed. May felt relief as she realized her misunderstanding of 'arrangement' and thought about his offer. She wasn't exactly doing anything tomorrow as her father was finally getting in the new ranch hands he had hired from town. Her room was pretty much set up and she figured her mother wouldn't mind her going out, especially to meet new people. Honestly, she couldn't understand why mothers were so obsessed with the prospect of their children meeting new people. May decided that it would be okay. Again, Drew did encourage her to make the most of her time there. And it wasn't as if she and Ash were going on a date or anything. At least she hoped so.

"Um, okay. That sounds fine." She agreed complacently. Ash grinned.

"Great! I'll come by to pick you up at two o' clock! Be ready, and bring some of your Pokémon if you can," he said. May nodded, suddenly feeling warmth inside. Ash nodded and then began to start back toward his own ranch.

"Ash wait!" she called. She had a knotted feeling in her gut, but again, knew it wouldn't be anything against Drew or Petalburg. He stopped and then turned around.

"Yeah?" he asked. May shifted her feet nervously before looking back up at him with kind eyes.

"Thanks, for everything today. I mean, for showing us around and protecting us. I really appreciate it," she told him Ash stared at her for a bit before softening his expression into a smile.

"No problem. I owed you one, remember?" he smirked and then waved goodbye to her, setting off for home. May waved farewell to him in return, continuing to watch as he sauntered down the cobblestone driveway and over to his own home. She suddenly felt an uneasy feeling in her stomach. Her hands were getting clammy and her heart was beating a little faster than normal. She frowned and looked down, praying that she wasn't feeling what she thought she felt. Drew was her boyfriend, and she was in love with him. Or at least she thought so.

* * *

So May's going to meet Ash's friends, the rest of the Aria crew! :) I may delay in updating due to finals going on, but I will try my best! Thanks to all of my readers! 3


	4. Strange New Friends

Hey everybody! I'm so sorry for that enormous delay! I was finishing up my finals, and now I'm done! I'll try to update more often now, but I have a very busy summer up ahead of me, so please be patient! :) Thank you to everybody for their reading or reviews, I would be nowhere without your motivation. This chapter is my longest one yet, but I had a lot of fun writing it! I know throughout the story, Ash has seemed pretty OOC, but it's all part of the story, so keep that in mind! I know I always add an age list before every character is introduced, but I want you guys to get to read about them first so it's a better surprise! Again, thank you to all of my followers and readers and I hope you enjoy this chapter! :D Oh, and by the way, those three emboldened periods are meant to separate parts of the chapter, like those fancy symbols do in some books to section of parts within a chapter! I had some cool symbols too, but I don't know how to make them show up on this format so I had to settle with periods! Anyways, thanks again! :D

* * *

**Chapter 4: Strange New Friends**

May had just about gone through almost every one of her outfits, where they lied in a volcanic heap on the floor of her bedroom. She paced around anxiously, picking up one shirt after another and rejecting them in sheer panic.

"Ash'll be here any second! What am I supposed to wear?" she vented apprehensively as she began to tear through the pile of clothing. She finally unearthed a rosy-red and black plaid tank top with spaghetti straps and three small buttons upon the bust. Satisfied, then she quickly rummaged through the pile again to find a matching pair of black jean shorts.

"This'll have to do," she said reluctantly as she glanced at her Torchic-shaped clock which now read "1:57". She hastily stripped herself of her pajamas and quickly dressed up in her outfit for the day. When she was finished buttoning up her tank top, she quickly raced over to the tall, red framed mirror and evaluated her appearance. The outfit overall was decent looking, the red color popping out nicely with her black shorts complimenting the plaid pattern. She had decided to leave her bandana, as she thought it might be too much for a first meeting. For her shoes, she had on a pair of black, strappy wedge heeled shoes that were relatively small in height, but nevertheless looked lovely with the ensemble.

May smiled lightly, pleased with her styling and then took another quick look at the clock, which now read "2:01". She hurriedly grabbed a small, navy blue drawstring backpack that contained some of her Poké Balls and exited her room. May raced down the stairs, entering the foyer and quickly heading into the living room where her mother and Max sat watching something on the big television. Caroline looked up at May and beamed.

"You look nice!" she complimented May smiled shyly at the comment.

"I'll be home around eleven, I'm just going to meet up with some friends" she said, hoping her use of the word 'friends' would be valid soon. Ash would be by any moment to pick her up and introduce her to some of his friends. She had been nervous about it since yesterday, worried about whether they'd like her or not. Ash seemed to tease her a lot because she was from the city; she knew he was only kidding around, but what if his friends had this bitter rivalry with city kids or something? She knew she could be over thinking the entire matter, but that still didn't quell her apprehension.

"You'll be with Ash, right?" Caroline inquired sternly. Max snickered and May blushed in embarrassment.

"Yes, but it's NOT like that!" she glared at Max, who only shrugged in false innocence. Caroline relaxed a bit.

"That's good, as long as he's with you, I don't have to worry," she breathed. May groaned and turned around to head out to the foyer, waving a light goodbye to Max and her mother as she did. She stepped outside of her house and into the bright, sunny daylight. It was a beautiful day; puffy white clouds clumped around the cyan sky and the sunlight bathed the land in warmth and shine. Even the flowers were much more vibrant in the light.

May continued down the cobblestone driveway, gazing at the sunny sky in awe. She couldn't remember the last time it had been so entirely bright in Petalburg.

"Hey, nice outfit!" someone suddenly called out in a familiar husky voice. May looked forward to see Ash and Pikachu sauntering up the Main Path. He looked as polished as ever with his spiky mess of black hair handsomely darting in front of his amber eyes. He wore a smoky gray track jacket with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows over a fitted white V-neck shirt that nicely outlined his well-defined abs. His jeans were a dusky black color while he wore a pair of off-white sneakers and black fingerless gloves. And of course, he donned on his red and white baseball cap. Pikachu, looking as cute as ever, scampered up beside him.

May stared at his dapper form, her eyes fixated upon his dazzling eyes and upbeat expression. She barely even heard his compliment. Ash finally met up to her; even with wedge heels, May was still barely up to his chin. It was only until he smiled at her did she realize that he had complimented her clothes, which turned her red.

"Thanks, I literally just threw it on…" she mumbled. Ash chuckled and spotted her navy bag.

"Oh good, you brought your Pokémon! Are you ready to go?" he asked. Pikachu hopped up at May.

"Pika!" it squeaked happily. May scooped him up into her arms and nodded to Ash.

"Yeah, let's go,"

Ash and May set off down further south, leaving behind the ranches and entering a more arboreal vicinity. The path was now bordered by smaller oak trees and the path was slowly becoming steeper. May could spot some smaller Pokémon skittering about in the trees and bushes; some were completely unknown to her.

It felt strange, walking with him. For one, Ash had never told her about his high standing rank as a Pokémon Trainer. She barely knew much about it, only knowing what Max had told her. He didn't seem to be hiding it from her, but it seemed like a subject he left best unsaid. It was incredible how modest he appeared to her. Then again, she only knew him for a day. As she walked beside him, she glanced back up at his eyes again. They always seemed to be alert and upbeat, no matter how calm he was. May couldn't get the look on his face out of her head when she had first seen him battle. True, it was a short lived moment, yet she saw so much passion and resolve. It was as if he was where he belonged. He must have taken time off to train his Pokémon. That had to be it. Trainers need a break too, right?

"So I told everyone about you; they're all excited to meet you." Ash said as he clasped his arms behind his head leisurely. May looked at him questioningly.

"Really? I guess I'm a little nervous about meeting them myself… "She trailed off and smiled uneasily. Ash patted her on the back.

"Don't be; they're all decent, some a bit strange." He smirked. May laughed a little and then there was a slight silence between the two until Ash suddenly asked

"So May, I never got to ask you this, but what was Petalburg like? I mean, were you a Pokémon Trainer there?" May blinked at Ash, surprised that he was actually interested in what her life was like before the move. She figured that she was the curious one between the two.

"Actually, I was Pokémon Coordinator," she smiled at the ground as she said this. Ash's eyes widened.

"A Pokémon Coordinator? That really cool! So you used to compete in Pokémon Contests! I bet you have a lot of ribbons," he said enthusiastically. May blushed in embarrassment, fighting a smirk.

"Well, I _do _have a few…" she said in a falsely shy tone. Ash grinned at her.

"I've entered a couple of Pokémon Contests, but I've never won any ribbons. I wasn't very good with showing off "beauty" in battle," he smiled weakly. May laughed.

"I guess there's a big difference between regular battling and Contest battles!" she giggled. Ash snorted.

"Of course! I'm not accustomed to making Pikachu look pretty when thrashing another Pokémon," he teased. Pikachu yelped in agreement while May lightly punched Ash's arm.

"It's called "grace", Ash Ketchum! You should learn some!" she smirked playfully. Ash groaned in response and held his arms behind his head again.

"I'm a guy. Grace doesn't exist in our blood," he scowled. May giggled again. She had to admit that Ash was cute when he was annoyed.

"Really? Because there are lots of male Pokémon Coordinators too," she declared firmly, "As a matter of fact, my boyfriend, Drew, is a Pokémon Coordinator," she boasted, yet she felt a pang of uneasiness mentioning him in front of Ash. It pained her because she didn't even understand why.

"Oh, you mean the boy who likes roses? At least that's what I think your brother said…" he responded thoughtfully. May immediately turned red in embarrassment.

"Max just tries to find different ways to annoy me, that's all! And yes, Drew likes roses, many guys like flowers," she stated stalwartly. Ash just blinked at her for a second and then burst into laughter. May folded her arms and pouted.

"What's so funny?" she demanded. Ash wiped his eyes and gave her one of the brightest smiles she had ever seen.

"You're really cute when you're mad, do you know that?" he chuckled. May gasped and flushed red again, trying not to look at his charming grin. Ash laughed again and then continued on walking forward.

"Don't get flustered, I'm only teasing; after all, we're friends!" he grinned. May glanced at him again to see another one of his comely smiles, her face still red. She sighed and then looked up at him.

"What about you? You're obviously a Pokémon Trainer," May smirked at him in a victorious fashion. Ash ogled her back in a playful manner and then straightened himself up.

"Pretty much," he said as he picked up his pace. May frowned at his sudden curtness.

"Not exactly the answer I was looking for, but okay…" she murmured as she tried to meet his quickened step. Ash gave her a calm smile.

"Well, what do you call a rancher who rarely trains his Pokémon anymore?" he said disarmingly. May gazed at Ash with a softened expression. He walked tall and strong with a soft smile on his face, but at that moment, he seemed a bit sardonic almost. He then glanced back at May with kind eyes.

"Don't get me wrong though, I'll still battle whenever I get the chance," he said valiantly. May kept his gaze, seeing that same passion flicker through his eyes again.

"Maybe you should battle with me," she suggested amusingly. Ash laughed out loud.

"On what terms? Contest terms or Battle terms?" he teased.

"Contest terms of course!"

"No way, my Pokémon don't do ballet moves while beating others up,"

"Pi Pikachu!"

"Then maybe I'll teach them!" May sneered.

"Sure, what's roughhousing without lyrical?" Ash muttered. May laughed and playfully punched his arm again. After three weeks of being by herself, it felt good to be laughing with somebody again; it felt good to be going out and having a good time; but more importantly, it just felt good to be with somebody.

**...**

It had been a little while since Ash and May had ventured down further in the South Fork. The trees surrounding the Main Path were now much taller and diverse, from oaks, to rowans, to alder trees. It was nothing compared to the woods of Relique Weald, which were extremely arboreal. As they continued on, the trees began to lessen and soon, May was introduced to an enormous grassy plain strewn with a rainbow of scattered flowers. She was able to make out a tiny pond far from where she stood along with a couple of large trees placed in random spots.

"Here we are; Erba Park," said Ash. May gushed at the regal appearance of the park until her eyes fell upon a tall oak tree with a small bench next to it.

"There they are," Ash pointed to the bench and the tree and then gestured for May to follow after him, who did so bit nervously.

"Hey!" Ash called out in his husky voice, a bright grin on his face. As they got closer, May noticed that there were four people, two sitting on the bench, and two standing. The two on the bench were girls, probably no older than she was. There was a tall guy leaning against the tree with his arms folded and another who just stood with his hands in his pocket; it wasn't until they had finally reached the tall oak that she was able to make out their features.

"Hey guys!" Ash greeted them jovially while May followed behind him more slowly, slightly hiding herself behind him. One of the girls scoffed and stood up from the bench with a smirk.

"Hello to you too, Tardy Boy! I thought you were supposed to be here ten minutes ago," she said with her arms folded. May peeked over from behind Ash to see a very beautiful girl. She was definitely her age or maybe slightly older; she had big, purple hair that was brushed down into a long, straight style with the end tied up by a yellow bow. Her skin was very dark and lovely against her honey-gold eyes. She wore a long, white tunic top with bell sleeves up to her elbows and a pair of dark green leggings with small, black bowed flats. May stared in awe at her angelic appearance.

"Pikachu Pika!" Pikachu cried out and leaped out of May's arms to greet her. She responded by scratching him behind the ears affectionately and then looked back at Ash.

"Sorry. I told you, I was bringing someone," he scratched his head sheepishly and then moved over to unmask May, who smiled nervously.

"Everyone, this is May. She's moved here all the way from the Hoenn region," he introduced her.

"H-hi," May stuttered. The purple haired girl smiled.

"Hi May! Welcome to Aria, I'm Iris!" she exclaimed amiably. May instantly liked her. She seemed upbeat and energetic based on her tone.

"She's the crazy one," Ash whispered into May's ear. Iris scowled.

"Likewise to you, smartass!" she snapped. May giggled a bit.

"Nice to meet you too!" she replied sweetly. The boy with his hands in his pockets suddenly stepped up with a kind smile on his face. He had stark green hair that was lightly flitted upward in the front and he had matching green eyes. He wore a very fine white button up shirt framed with a nice, clean collar. Over the shirt was a black button up vest and along with it, he wore a pair of black dress pants and black dress shoes. Overall, he was a very comely and polished boy. He wasn't as built as Ash, but more lean and gentleman-like. He was probably a bit older than Ash.

"Pleased to meet you May, I'm Cilan, the one and only, Pokémon Connoisseur! And a pretty good one at that! It's an honor to meet such a lovely lady," He said harmonically and shook her hand gracefully. Iris rolled her eyes.

"He's such a kiss up, just wait 'till you get to know him!" Iris asserted, met with a disappointed glare from Cilan.

"What about you? Being so nice all of a sudden…" Ash snickered and was met with a blow to the arm by her.

"I love your outfit, May!" the other girl sitting on the bench piped up suddenly. She stood up and dusted herself off and May got a full glimpse of her. She was a regal beauty. She had elegant, long blue hair that fell below her shoulders and dazzling cobalt eyes. She wore a periwinkle-blue tube dress with a floral pattern of baby pink roses with olive-green stems and leaves. The dress reach to her mid thighs and she wore a pair of white, strappy wedge heels also decorated with flower patterns. She seemed to be the same age as Iris, and possibly, May. May blinked in astonishment. First Iris, and then herl; the girls in Aria were bewitchingly gorgeous.

The girl walked up to May and held out her hand with a big, lovely smile.

"Hi May! I'm Dawn! Between you and me, I'm the only one you should really trust!" she whispered to her with a wink. Iris slapped her arm playfully.

"Don't listen to her, May!" she teased. Suddenly, a fit of arguments broke out between the three and finally, the boy leaning up against the tree stood up.

"Alright guys, we're making a bad impression! Let's all calm down!" he said kindly. Now this boy was very tall, taller than Ash even. He was also very built as evident of the muscles that were visible from underneath his dark green T-shirt. He wore a pair of blue jeans and brown boots along with a beat-up brown leather jacket. His face was unique; he had very squinted eyes to the point where they looked closed and his skin was very dark, but lighter than Iris'. His hair was a spiky dark brown mess, but he had a very amiable, handsome appearance. May assumed that he was probably the oldest of the group, looking like he was in his early twenties.

"Hi May, my name's Brock. I'm sorry about all of the fuss, we were very thrilled to meet you," he said graciously. Iris, Cilan, and Dawn stopped their bickering and all smiled at May.

"Of course! You don't see a lot of people moving here anymore! It's great to have you here!" Cilan beamed. Ash chuckled at their enthusiasm while May smiled in amazement.

"That's all of them…I think…Hey, where are Autumn and Barry?" he asked confusedly. Dawn rolled her eyes and was about to speak until she was interrupted by a loud rustling. They all glanced up at the oak tree and May spotted a boy sitting high on top of a limb.

"Up here!" he called out and suddenly leaped down, causing everyone to jump out of the way hastily.

"You didn't think I'd miss out on your new girl, did you, ASH?" he sneered impishly. He was about to say more, but Dawn suddenly pinched his nose in annoyance.

"I told you to come down from that tree earlier! Now you've embarrassed us!" she hissed. Barry scoffed.

"I think you guys were already doing that!" he laughed, only to be met with a smack upside the head. Ash groaned and shook his head while May just giggled.

"May, this is Barry—"Ash began but was cut off immediately.

"Pleased to meet you May! I'm the one and only, Barry Pearl! No autographs, please!" he declared pompously. Dawn moaned in frustration while Iris laughed mockingly.

"As if she'd want one, Pachirisu!" she jeered. Barry scowled at her. May took a good look at Barry. He was the same height as Ash, and even he was nicely built. He had spiky blonde hair with a pair of bangs swept across his fiery orange eyes. He wore a dark gray V-neck sweater, exposing his well-developed chest muscles, with the sleeves rolled up and a small silver chain around his neck. He wore a pair of dark blue jeans and light gray slip-on shoes. He then turned back to May with a friendly smile.

"But really, welcome to Aria! You won't find a better region than this one!" he cried triumphantly. May laughed, amused by his energy.

"Thanks, Barry. It's great to meet you guys," she smiled softly.

"You haven't met all of them, though, where's Autumn?" Ash asked. Brock stepped up.

"She had to work today unfortunately," he said. Iris snickered.

"For YOU, mostly!" she smirked as Brock turned red. Ash sighed and then laughed, turning to May.

"Autumn works at the Café Cabin in town. It's a great restaurant, we'll take you there. She's really nice," he said. Now it was Barry's turn to laugh mischievously.

"Too bad for Brocko, here!" he said. May glanced at Brock, who was even redder than before. Ash continued

"Brock and Autumn are engaged," he smirked triumphantly at his friend who was now scratching his head coyly.

"They're as cute as ever! You should've seen him propose! It was the most romantic thing ever! He did it in front of everyone in the Café Cabin! Wait 'till you see the ring!" Dawn gushed, her eyes were wide. Barry gave her a stern, yet comical look.

"What about when I bought you those shoes?" he demanded. Dawn giggled and grabbed his arm affectionately, looking back at May.

"Barry here's my plus one!" she squeaked delightedly.

"And not a very smart one either!" Iris followed up enthusiastically, earning a glare from him. She stuck her tongue out and then looked back at May.

"And it looks like you and the Ash-man are going strong too, huh?" she smirked. May immediately blushed, smiling nervously. Ash groaned.

"I told you, Iris, we're just friends, and May's got a boyfriend." He explained. Dawn's jaw dropped.

"Are you guys long-distanced? That's so sweet! And you're still with him!" she cried. Barry narrowed his eyes in frustration.

"I can be sweet too…" he muttered. Dawn gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"Well, that's unfortunate. Sorry Ash!" Iris said smugly. Ash glared at her and Cilan just rolled his eyes and put his hand on Iris' shoulder.

"Come on, Iris! Don't be so brash! Be a lady for one!" he chided playfully. Iris gave him a falsely innocent half smile and then patted his head.

"Yes, sir gentleman," she said in a mocking sweet tone. May immediately noticed the chemistry between the two and giggled softly. She watched as Iris and Cilan began to banter, with Ash trying to calm them down, and Barry trying to "out-romance" Brock by making fierce declarations to Dawn in front of him. She really liked them. They were congenial and so carefree, so vivacious. She smiled gently at them, before catching Ash's eye, who scratched his head whilst grinning.

"We're a mess of things, really," he said. May just laughed. He then straightened himself up and looked over at Barry.

"So what's the plan today? Are we still carrying out the plan?" he asked. Barry nodded vigorously.

"Uh, YEAH! Come on Ash, we've been planning this for weeks!" he snapped. Ash shrugged and then glanced over at a May, who looked confused. Dawn giggled.

"Ash, did you tell May what we'd be up to today?" she asked teasingly. Ash scratched his head again nervously.

"No, but now's as good as any time to tell her," he said. May blinked in befuddlement. What were they planning exactly? She suddenly hoped they weren't conducting anything suspicious. Iris sighed and shook her head at Ash.

"You just moved here, so I'm guessing you don't know about the Rocket couple." She said.

"The Rocket couple?" May asked.

"They're a mean bunch!" Dawn exclaimed. Cilan continued where Iris left off.

"They moved here a couple of months ago. They live in the small chase down east of here. They're not very popular with the town, more notorious really. They've dined and dashed, been accused of theft, and have been caught setting up Pokémon traps in the East Fork and the West Fork." May listened on intently. Then Ash spoke.

"About a month ago, we caught them mistreating some of the Pokémon in the chase. We ended up confronting them, but they just denied it and ran off."

"So today, we're going to mess around with them a bit," Dawn winked at May, who just looked perplexed. Brock stepped up.

"They've been a big bother to everyone. Why not teach them a lesson?" he inquired rhetorically. Barry sauntered up with a swelled chest.

"After we did a little inspection, we found out that they've dug up a pit trap in the chase that's little ways by their house. So we figured that the best plan is to give them a taste of their own medicine..." he snickered mischievously. Ash turned to May with hopeful eyes.

"Are you in?" he asked. May looked down a bit reluctantly. She didn't know yet what they were planning on doing, but she knew they didn't seem the type to hurt people. She had to admit, she and her friends pulled their fair share of pranks back in Hoenn, so she couldn't really bash them. Then again, she didn't even know the Rockets. If they were as bad as they described them, then she saw no reason as to not deal with them. And after all, it was a while since she had done anything truly wild and out there. But most of all, she wanted to do it for her new friends. She shrugged and then grinned.

"Why not?" she smirked.

"Hooray!" Dawn squealed and threw her arms around her. Barry smiled smugly and then gathered everybody around.

"Alright, so here's the plan! May, since you're new, you'll be a decoy with Dawn," he grinned. May nodded avidly and continued to listen, her eyes growing wide in amusement at the details of Barry's plan. As soon as he was finished explaining, he pumped his fist into the air.

"Alright team! Let's get moving!" he cried. Pikachu pumped his tiny fist into the air as well.

"Pi Pikachu!"

**_..._**

"Argh, I shouldn't have worn these shoes!" Dawn whined as she and May plundered dauntingly through the thick undergrowth of the forested chase. May nodded pitifully in agreement as she pulled a couple of leaves out of her hair. Dawn and May trudged through the chase as the others were dispersed all around. It was all according to plan. She and Dawn were on their way to the Rockets' house for a "friendly" visit. May quickly wiped off a couple of sweat droplets from her forehead in weariness.

"Tell me about it! By the way, where did you get your shoes? They're lovely!" May gushed as they made their way further. Dawn immediately perked up.

"I actually designed these! Barry's such a sweetheart that he actually had them custom made for me on my birthday!" she swooned as she thought about her blonde-haired boyfriend. May giggled.

"So how long have you and Barry been together?" she asked as they finally entered clearer grounds and began to walk more steadily.

"It'll be four years next month," Dawn said excitedly, "Barry and I have known each other since we were kids. It took him twelve years to finally ask me out!" she laughed. May smiled warmly at her.

"That's so sweet!" she exclaimed. They suddenly stopped as they saw a patch of vibrant red flowers standing before them.

"Red flower patch? This is the spot Barry told us about; this is where the pit trap is. Now he told us to go around, so we have to literally stick to the edge of the path," Dawn instructed. May nodded and carefully began to step over to the edge of the path, slowly moving along it as close as she could. Dawn was about to follow, but then stopped and quickly ran back to scoop up the red flower patch into a big bunch.

"I almost forgot!" she chirped delightfully and then went back to follow May. They continued to walk along the edge the whole way over, cautious of the pit trap and they finally sauntered back to the center upon seeing a tree with a Swellow's nest on it.

"So we can relax once we've seen the Swellow's nest, right?" May asked. Dawn stepped forward lightly, testing the ground and turned back to May, nodding vigorously.

"Yep! Barry said so! He had his Roserade check everything before, so we're fine now. Come on! They're house is just around that bush patch!" Dawn and May rushed around the bush patch and kept on following the pathway until they spotted a cabin house.

May looked nervously at the house. It wasn't nearly as big as her house, but still looked homey with a slight two-story build. There was a small fence that was slightly visible, but circled around the back. The place itself looked a bit sinister and run-down; she was suddenly much more thankful for her massive cabin house back home.

Dawn grinned deviously and quickly arranged the flower bunch into a more presentable bouquet, dusting her dress off and fixing up her hair with her spare hand. May did the same as she straightened out her hair and the two slowly stepped up towards the porch.

"You ready for this?" Dawn asked excitedly. May nodded with a smile.

"Great! Okay, just follow my lead!" she whispered as they were now near the door. May turned her head around to identify the dusky place more and suddenly saw a figure hiding behind a nearby weld of trees. It was Ash, who winked at her and then concealed himself further. She smiled a bit, comforted by his presence and then turned back as Dawn rapped on the door gently. They heard a couple of footsteps and then a loud shout.

"James! Get the door!" someone shrieked, causing May and Dawn to jump a bit.

"But DJ Mary's on television!" another voice called in a whiny tone.

"Just get it or else!" The two girls then heard a loud groan followed by emerging footsteps. May and Dawn stepped back as they heard the lock being fumbled with and then looked up as the door swung open.

It was a young man, probably in his late twenties with longish blue-violet hair and emerald eyes. He was a tall, lean man wearing a white T-shirt stained with what looked like ketchup and a pair of loosely fitted light-wash jeans with dirt covering the ends and a rip at the knee. He looked extremely irritated and gazed questioningly at the girls.

"Twerp? What do you want? And who's the other twerp? I've never seen you before," he narrowed his eyes at them. May almost choked as his breath hit her directly; it smelled worse than rotting food! Dawn smiled nervously.

"Hello Mr. Rocket! We were just strolling by and we thought that we might pay you all a visit! This is my friend, May. She just moved here all the way from the Hoenn region!" Dawn exclaimed, her voice perfectly delightful. May gave her an uncomfortable glance; she had to give Dawn credit, for she was an excellent actress.

"Oh really? You wanted to pay _us _a visit?" he replied sardonically. Dawn shifted around uncomfortably, but still kept a bright smile.

"James! Who is it?" they heard that shrill voice again and soon, a red-haired woman stomped up next to James. May's jaw dropped in her appearance as she wore nothing but a small green towel wrapped loosely atop her chest with her wet hair twisted up into another towel. It was obvious that she had just left the shower. May blinked in surprise at their oblivious indecency, finding it hard that Dawn could still be keeping up the act even after seeing that.

"Oh, it's just the twerp. And who's this one?" she demanded rudely.

"Good day, Mrs. Rocket! You look as lovely as ever! This is my friend May; she moved here all the way from the Hoenn region just recently!" Dawn exclaimed in false enthusiasm. The woman just scoffed, but then smirked at May.

"You're from the Hoenn region, huh? Interesting…James! Get some chairs! Let's treat our guests to a little something!" she piped in her shrill voice. James looked at her in astonishment.

"You want to invite them in Jessie? But—"

"Why not? They came all this way to see us, let's have them! I would just love to ask little May here about what _Pokémon _she has…!" the woman called Jessie winked at him and carefully emphasized the word "Pokémon" and James opened his mouth in realization.

"Oh! I get it—" he exclaimed but was abruptly silenced by a strong elbow to the chest by Jessie. She then looked at the girls in blatantly false sweetness.

"Come on in, girls! Oh Twerp—I mean, Dawn! Where did you get those shoes from the thrift shop?" she inquired in as kind of a tone as possible. Dawn gritted her teeth as she and May stepped in, but then straightened herself up quickly. As they entered, May took a good look at the house, which was utterly a pigsty. They had a small, rasping television playing a murky scene of one of DJ Mary's songs and a dirt-patched couch with an enormous tear in the side. There was a bag of potato chips on the couch with its spilled contents all over the floor. There were several stains on the floor which looked like it hadn't been cleaned in ages and there was an enormous bulge emerging from the ceiling as if there were something so heavy on top that it was slowly breaking due to the pressure. Behind all of the living room setting was a clouded glass sliding door, which lay visible a couple of Pokémon which consisted of a Linoone, a Cherrim, three Sentret, and a Buizel. Worst of all was the smell, which was a combination of old garbage and a public bathroom. May silently thanked her mother for all of her cleaning efforts as she fought a grimace.

James emerged with two unstable-looking chairs and set them down in front of the half-eaten couch. As the girls seated themselves, May couldn't help but notice that the Pokémon behind the sliding door looked very sad. The Linoone had its head slumped down and the Cherrim was shaking fearfully. The three Sentret huddled up together as if to protect themselves and the Buizel was frowning. The worst part about it was the fact that they were all chained to the fence.

Jessie, still not changed out of her towel, quickly fell upon the couch ungracefully and leaned back leisurely. James followed, but as he bent down to sit, his pants began to slide off.

"James! I told you to put on a belt!" Jessie snarled angrily. James frowned.

"I can't find any of them!" he cried. May bit her lip and tried to look occupied by observing other parts of the house while Dawn just kept smiling and thrust the red flowers into Jessie's hands.

"Here you go, Mrs. Rocket! We picked them just for you!" she said in a buttery tone. Jessie took them whilst giving her a strange look and observed the flowers closely in confusion.

"Where did you get these…?" she asked in utter confusion. James blinked at them.

"Hey these look like the flowers next to our—" he was again hushed by a swift punch in the arm by Jessie.

"What he meant to say, was that these look like the flowers that grow all around here! So th-th-_thanks_," she stuttered questionably as she tried to say "thank you". May got the feeling that she didn't exactly say it all too often. Jessie then turned to face May.

"So! Tell me about all about Hoenn, specifically, your Pokémon! You must have many _powerful_ ones!" she looked ravenously at May's navy bag. May laughed nervously.

"I guess you could say that…" she stammered. Jessie let out a discordantly high-pitched guffaw and then looked back at May with devious eyes.

"Please, _show me_!" she insisted. May hesitated and gave Dawn a quick glance, who nodded curtly. She then sighed and proceeded to smile uneasily.

"Okay…" she opened her bag and rummaged through it, pulling out a Poké Ball.

"Come on out! She yelled and a great big flash of light emerged, followed by the formation of a figure. Jessie and James gasped in delight as they were introduced to Beautifly, who flapped its wings magnificently. Jessie's eyes were wide and sparkling.

"Oh how delightful! A Beautifly! It's _impeccable_!" she cheered. May scratched her head bashfully as she croaked a "thanks" to her. James' mouth was agape as he gazed in awe at the Pokémon. Jessie snickered then and looked back up at May with fallacious innocence.

"Your Beautifly is so lovely! But wouldn't it be even better if it had sparkly wings?" she proposed to James who gave her a wink and continued.

"Why, yes Jessie! I think it would! Well, you missy, are in luck because that's what we specialize in! What do you say, May? All you have to do is leave Beautifly with us for a day, and we'll have her dazzling in no time!" he exclaimed. May blinked in disbelief and glanced at Dawn again, who confirmed her doubt by shaking her head lightly. As she was about to reply, she suddenly saw something moving over the fence through the glass door. It was Ash, Iris, Brock, Cilan, and Barry! Iris looked up to see May staring at her and gave her a wink before glancing at the Rockets, who had their backs turned to them, completely unaware of what was going on, and then flipped them off, snickering intently before Cilan grabbed her in fear of being discovered. May fought a smile and glanced at Dawn who watched elatedly as Barry blew her kisses. Pikachu, who was perched atop Ash's hat waved cutely over to May, who stifled a giggle.

They watched as their friends began to quickly free the Pokémon in the back, whom now looked delighted at their appearance. Ash glanced at May and smiled at her, giving her a light wave before saying an inaudible command to Pikachu, who then nodded. May couldn't hear them from behind the glass door, but watched as Pikachu leaped down from Ash's head. Its tail began to glow suddenly and then it slashed through the chains swiftly, doing so for all of the chained Pokémon. Ash patted its head proudly, murmuring what was probably praise.

"Well? Any time today!" Jessie demanded, breaking May's fixture upon her friends.

"I-I uh, um—" stammered uncomfortably, not knowing what to answer. Suddenly, a door on the left burst open and out walked a small, cat-like Pokémon. It yawned bleakly and then looked up to see Jessie, James, and the girls sitting down.

"What's going on, guys? What's the twerp doing here? And who's she?" he demanded, much to May's surprise.

"It talked!" she exclaimed. Jessie growled angrily.

"Be quiet, Meowth! Can't you see that we're busy?" she gnashed. Meowth's expression was dull until he came up to where they sat and his jaw dropped.

"Apparently you're too busy to see that the twerps are nabbing our catches!" he shrieked and pointed a claw angrily to the glass door. Jessie and James whirled around to see Iris opening the fence door and all of the captured Pokémon running out. She then caught their vicious glares and her jaw dropped as she made out the words "Uh-Oh" and quickly alerted the others, who dashed on out. Ash and Barry quickly motioned for the girls to dash before leaping over the fence and taking off. May and Dawn's hearts leaped and they began to get up. Jessie, James, and Meowth turned back to the girls and ferociously glowered at them, taking slow strides toward them. May quickly returned her Beautifly into its Poké Ball.

"Sorry! My Beautifly doesn't need any sparkles at the moment!" she hastily replied and she and Dawn took off running, bursting through the door as the Rockets and Meowth stayed in hot pursuit of them.

"You filthy liars! Get back here so I can rip you damned apart!" Jesse shrieked barbarically. James was running as well, but his pants slipped off in the midst of all of his body action and flew off in the other direction.

"Wait! Jessie, Meowth, my pants—"

"Forget it and follow them or else!" Jessie and Meowth simultaneously hollered at him. James sadly left his pants and continued to run in his Cleffa-printed boxers.

May and continued to run, but were hindered by their less-than-useful footwear, which they ended up removing and quickly continued on, holding them by the straps. As they continued running, they suddenly passed by the Swellow's nest and May cried out anxiously.

"Dawn! Wait! The pit trap! Go around, remember?" she exclaimed hysterically. Dawn widened her eyes and nodded.

"I completely forgot about it! Thanks May!" she called and they veered off onto the edge, moving as quickly as possible. May turned her head to see the trio gaining up on them. She and Dawn quickly pressed on and managed to reach the bristly leftovers of the stems from the red flower patch that Dawn picked. As she and Dawn ran away from the Rockets and Meowth, May couldn't help but feel a strange fire light within her. The entire scheme, the chase; it was all so invigorating, so exhilarating! She couldn't remember the last time when she felt this alive and inspirited.

Dawn and May finally made it across the pit trap, catching their breath at the flower patch stubs. Much to their surprise, the trio continued on running.

"Stopped for a nice breather, huh? Well it won't be for long—AAH!" Jessie screamed as the ground beneath her, James, and Meowth suddenly collapsed. May and Dawn watched in disbelief as they fell into their own trap, Jessie's towel flying off in the midst of the frenzy.

"AAH!" the trio shouted as they fell to the bottom of the pit with a loud _thud!_ May and Dawn peered into the whole to see a stark naked Jessie being squished by James, who was in his underwear, and a now swirly-eyed Meowth. Jessie quickly realized her situation and screamed again, viciously yanking James' shirt off of him and pulling it over herself in embarrassment.

"You dirty little twerps! I'll beat the shit out of you!" she shrieked in violent choler. May and Dawn just stared at them and burst out laughing, from them falling into their own pit trap to James being in his underwear and Jessie reduced to nudity. May was laughing so hard that tears were coming to her eyes.

"May! Dawn!" a husky voice called out worriedly. May, still laughing, looked up to see Ash, Brock, Barry, Iris, and Cilan all racing toward them. May and Dawn continued to laugh as they met up with them, looking utterly confused.

"Are you guys…okay?" Ash asked perplexedly. Barry rushed up to Dawn and pulled her into his arms.

"Are you alright, Dawn? You're not hurt, are you?" he demanded, not even fazed by her laughter. She wiped her eyes and embraced him.

"Of course I'm fine! We're both okay!" she giggled. Barry settled down and then gave her a funny look.

"Wait a minute, why are you laughing?" he asked. May grinned, pointing at the now fallen pit. The entire group walked over to the pit and gasped. Jessie was now sputtering curses in rage while James cried in defeat. Meowth was still knocked out and murmuring indecipherable words unconsciously. Everyone burst out laughing, especially Iris, who whipped out her purple cell phone and snapped a photo of them. Even Pikachu was in hysterics as he doubled back squeaking laughs.

"You just wait, damnit! I'll get you all for this!" Jessie fisted her hand angrily. Iris blew a raspberry at her and then laughed, showing her friends the picture.

"This'll go nicely on a frame," she smirked. Everyone burst out laughing again and then they all quickly turned tail, leaving the fuming trio behind in the pit. The group rushed off and away from the Rockets' vicinity, pushing through the thick copses and trying not to get scarred by roots. With a little effort, they soon reached the clearer part of the chase and continued on at a more casual pace.

"Great job, everyone! The plan was a success!" Barry cried out triumphantly with his arm around Dawn. They all cheered in response and soon began to exit the chase. May couldn't stop smiling. She had incredible fun today, and she loved Ash's friends, who were now her friends too. Iris with her toughness and humor; Cilan with his calm and gentlemanly demeanor; Dawn with her sweet and bubbly personality; Barry with his energy and playful cockiness; Brock with his amiability and big-brother like attitude; and finally Ash, with his strength and kindness. They were all so amazing. She couldn't believe how thrilled and enlivened she felt just hanging out with them for a day. And for a moment, she even forgot about how much she missed Petalburg. Ash looked over at her and smiled.

"You look like you had fun," he said. May smiled softly back at him.

"Of course I did! At first, I was really nervous, and when they started to go after us, I thought I was going to throw up, I was so scared! But at the same time, it was so exciting!" May exclaimed happily. The rest of the group turned to her and smiled at her enthusiasm, causing her to blush a bit in embarrassment. Ash just chuckled and patted her back amiably.

"Don't be shy! We're all friends here. Don't be afraid to smile," he said with kind eyes. May simpered back at him and started to feel her heart race again. Everyone stopped suddenly and stared forward as six small figures stood before them. It was the Pokémon they had freed earlier. The Linoone, Cherrim, Buizel, and three Sentret happily hopped up and down in front of them in gratitude, letting out thankful cries of appreciation. Pikachu leaped over to them and chirped at them cheerfully.

"Pika Pikachu Pi!" it exclaimed joyfully. The Pokémon waved goodbye to them gratefully and then scampered back into the depths of the chase. Brock smiled.

"We did well, guys," he said "Now what do you all say we go into town and get some celebratory ice cream?" he suggested. Everyone cheered in agreement and set off to exit the chase. May beamed eagerly as she followed her new friends, glad to be with them.

**...**

The sun was gently settling down in the sky, creating a beautiful fiery spread in the sky. The clouds were a shade of hot pink topped along with the gold of the sun, creating a swirl of vibrant colors. May gazed in wonder at the sky, asking herself if Aria could get any more mesmerizing. It took a while, but the group had finally reached Aria Town in the North Fork. May whipped out her cherry-red cell phone. The time was now 9:57. She would have to go home soon, but at least she lived closer towards the North Fork.

They were now in the midst of town. There weren't too many people, but there were more than May thought. She initially believed the area to be somewhat of a ghost town, but it had seemed that she was wrong. There were couples, children, and other adults shopping, eating, or just plain having a good time hanging out in town. She, along with Dawn and Iris were standing at the base of the large, black fountain while the others were getting ice cream. The lights were turning on inside as it became darker. May marveled at the beauty of the sunset upon the town, bathing it in a rich orange palette.

"Hey, here's your ice cream! Banana-pineapple flavored, just like you asked for!" May looked up to see Ash holding an ice cream cone to her face with a grin. Pikachu was perched up on his shoulder, eating up a packet of ketchup intently. She shyly took it from him and thanked him graciously. Barry and Cilan emerged as well, bringing cones to Dawn and Iris respectively.

"Hey, where's Brock?" Iris asked as she took a lick of her butter-pecan flavored ice cream. Barry and Cilan snickered mischievously.

"He's at the Café Cabin. They're closing for the night and he wanted to get some time with Autumn today," Cilan explained with a placid smile, taking a lick out of his mint chocolate chip cone. Iris and Dawn "awed" at that as they ate their ice cream. May glanced over at them.

"So when is the big day anyways?" she asked.

"It's only four months away now! You should see their parents fussing over them!" Dawn claimed whilst eating away at her strawberry ice cream.

"They have their reasons to be so excited; their oldest son, who's twenty now is taking the next big step in his life! Hell, I would be gushing over my son and his bride," Cilan said. Iris smirked at him and patted his back.

"There's the Cilan that I know! Crude and carefree!" she exclaimed while he scowled at her. Barry put his arm around Dawn as he finished his orange sorbet ice cream.

"Hmph, just watch and see Dawn, if you think he's romantic, just wait until I propose to you!" he gave her a cocky smile while she just laughed.

"You can't even afford a ring!" she giggled. Barry glared at her.

"Well excuse me for being underage! It's not the average seventeen-year old can go out and buy his girlfriend and engagement ring!" he scoffed. Dawn smiled sweetly, enjoying his impatience.

"I think twenty's a great age to get married. That's the time when you're young, but independent. It gives you time to enjoy your life as a couple before having kids; it's a prime time, really," Ash spoke up. He bit into his chocolate cone and smiled softly while everyone looked at him in disbelief.

"When did you start thinking about marriage, Ash? You've always been oblivious to love!" Dawn exclaimed. Ash scratched his head whilst simpering.

"I don't know, I guess with Brock's wedding around the corner, I've been really taking a look at that sort of stuff!" he said. May watched as their friends teased Ash for his sudden sentimentality. Then she started to think about marriage. She had always believed that she would marry Drew someday. They talked about it sometimes, but it always left Drew feeling uneasy, so she stopped after a while. Now here she was, several million miles away from him. He had told her to try to enjoy herself, and now she was more than ever. She looked back up at her new friends. Now Barry had Ash in a headlock, chiding him on his loss of "manliness" while Ash, chuckling struggled to get out. Cilan was obviously flirting with Iris while Dawn and Pikachu tried to get Barry to let Ash go. They were an odd bunch, but that's what she liked most about them.

"You guys are making a scene!" somebody called out suddenly. Everyone turned to see Brock shaking his head as he walked up to them. Beside him was a beautiful, young girl with short auburn hair and sparkling, plum brandy eyes. She was dressed up in a maid's dress, the headpiece, white thigh-high stockings and all. She laughed a buttery laugh at the group.

"Come on, Brock, are you really that surprised? This is a natural scene between these guys!" she giggled. Brock blushed and scratched his head shyly.

"Hey Autumn!" Ash greeted her amiably as Barry released him. May widened her eyes as she realized that the girl was Brock's fiancée. Her eyes fell upon her left hand, which was decorated with a beautiful, platinum banded, princess-cut diamond ring. It was as big and sparkly as ever, and looked stunning on her.

"Nice to see you and Barry are getting along, Ash," she laughed sweetly as she greeted him. Barry scoffed.

"I was just teaching Nancy-Boy here a lesson!" he declared. Autumn giggled again.

"Nancy-Boy, huh? Says the guy who writes poetry for his girlfriend." she smirked. Barry gasped and turned a bright shade of red while Dawn just laughed and kissed him on the cheek. So this was Autumn. She was awfully gorgeous and funny. Overall, she seemed very level-headed like Brock, but a bit more sardonic and energetic. May could tell she was probably in her early twenties as well as she seemed very mature despite her humorous comments.

"So I heard what you guys pulled today, I can't believe I missed it! We're going to have to do it again!" Autumn exclaimed eagerly. Ash stepped up beside May and gestured towards Autumn.

"May, this is Autumn, our friend, and Brock's fiancée," he introduced. May stepped up cordially and held out her hand.

"Nice to meet you, my name's May. Congratulations on your engagement!" she said sweetly. Autumn smiled warmly at her and blushed at the mention of her engagement.

"Oh, thank you! And it's so nice to finally meet you too! Excuse my outfit by the way, I just got off of work!" she shook her hand. May instantly liked her. She seemed almost like the big-sister type, similar to Brock's demeanor.

"Don't worry about it, I think it looks pretty cute anyway," May laughed.

"Well, thank you! I'll have to tell my sister that; she designed them! So May, I heard you moved here all the way from Hoenn! That is some move! Were you a Pokémon Trainer there?" she asked. May smiled shyly.

"Actually, I was a Pokémon Coordinator," she replied.

"A Coordinator?" Dawn exclaimed suddenly. She raced over to May, her eyes wide and glittering.

"I used to compete in Pokémon Contests too! Ash, why didn't you tell me she was a Pokémon Coordinator?" she pouted at Ash who shrugged sheepishly.

"I didn't even know until today!" he protested.

"A Pokémon Coordinator, huh? So now we have you, AND Dawn. You guys ought to show us your appeals sometime!" Autumn smiled.

"Why don't you guys just do it now? We'd all love to see them," Brock said as he stepped up and put his arm around Autumn. Everyone began to cheer in favor of it while Dawn and May blushed.

"Oh, why not? Let's do it, May!" Dawn insisted, grabbing her arm. May thought for a moment and then nodded.

"Okay, sure! Let's go then!" she grinned. May and Dawn stepped back and took out their chosen Poké Balls, tossing them into the air.

"Wartortle! Take the stage!" May shouted.

"Piplup! Spotlight!" Dawn followed. As the two Pokémon emerged, the girls began to yell out appeal attacks, taking turns in demonstrating their moves and their custom additives to the performance. May was utterly enjoying herself as she and Dawn entertained their friends, who watched in awe and applauded after every presentation. May suddenly caught the kind gaze of Ash, who cheered her on the loudest and blushed. _And this one's for you…_She thought as she finished her appeal with a dazzling ending.

**...**

It was nearly eleven o' clock, and May and Ash had finally set off for home. It was completely dark now, so Ash was using the flashlight built into his blue cell phone.

"Those appeals were fantastic! Are you sure you weren't the Grand Festival Champion? Because if that's the case, then those judges were blinder than Zubats!" Ash exclaimed. May laughed and shook her head.

"Unfortunately no, but there are a lot of tough Coordinators out there! I mean, did you see Dawn? She was incredible! I can definitely believe that she used to travel to other regions just to compete!" she replied. After the end of their appeal presentation, Dawn had explained to May of hers and Barry's travels throughout the Sinnoh region to hone their skills, his as a Pokémon Trainer, and hers as a Pokémon Coordinator. It was the same as Ash, who had also traveled the world and gained a considerable rank as a trainer. She was still a little surprised that he didn't even mention his past victories.

"Huh, well I won't believe it until I see it." He declared. May giggled again. They were finally nearing her house now, and luckily, they were on time.

"Well, here's where I drop you off. I'm really glad you came today. We had a blast. And everyone really likes you," Ash grinned as they started up the cobblestone driveway. May simpered delightfully.

"Really? Well, I really liked them too. I had a wonderful time with you all. Thanks for inviting me," she beamed at him. Ash chuckled and gave her a soft smile and then pocketed his hands.

"Well, you'd better come next time we all get together. You're an official member of the group now," he smirked.

"I will, for sure! And Ash…I'm glad we're friends…" May said reverently. Ash gazed at her with slightly widened eyes and then his expression allayed to a kind look.

"Me too, May." He replied. He then waved goodbye to her and set off down the cobblestone driveway again back to his own home.

May watched as he disappeared out of view and then sauntered back toward the door. She and Ash were friends. And that would be it.

* * *

So all of that craziness in one day! May finally got to meet Ash's friends and they even got closer :) I'm sorry to say that I might delay the next chapter a bit due to other commitments, but I'll try and deliver the next chapter asap! I hope you enjoyed this one! Thank you again to my readers and followers 3

P.S. I got the chapter name from one of the lyrics of this song I like called 'White Houses' by Vanessa Carlton! :3


	5. You and Me

Hey everyone! I know I took a little long to update, but I was able to finish this chapter finally! :) This chapter centers around the May, Max and Ash a lot and I made sure to include a lot of shippiness! Again, I hope you all enjoy it! And another thing to add is that I won't be able to update for a couple of days due to some outer commitments, but I guarantee you that I will definitely be posting Chapter 6 soon! I already have an outline for it, so please bear with me! :) Again, thank you to all of my readers and reviewers! Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 5: You and Me**

_"Hello?"_

_ "Hey, Drew! It's me!"_

_ "Oh! May! Hey, how are you? How's the new home?"_

_ "I'm doing fine, and it's getting better. What about you? What've you been up to for so long that you've forgotten to call me these past few weeks?" _

_ "Oh…I figured you'd be mad…"_

_ "Well I'm not exactly happy…I mean, I'm missing you here and you've only called me once out of the last month…"_

_ "I'm sorry, May, but I'm busy too. Solidad, Harley and I have been training really hard. The Wallace Cup is coming to Hoenn,"_

_ "I know you're training, but was it really that hard to pick up the phone and call me once in a while?"_

_ "Well, do I constantly have to call you? I mean, I know we're long distance right now, but I don't always have time, and when I have time, I'm exhausted."_

_ "Drew, I always find the time to call you, but you've never answered until now!"_

_ "Yeah, but you aren't as busy as I am. You're not working that hard over there!"_

_ "I beg your pardon?"_

_ "You heard me. What's milking a Miltank compared to hours of appeal and battle training?"_

_ "You really think you work harder than I do?"_

_ "That seems the case." _

_ "Wow, I can't believe I actually missed you! You're acting as stuck up as ever, you big jerk. And I'll have you know that I'm working my ass off here, and it's not just milking Miltank but a whole lot more!"_

_ "Oh calm down, I can't deal with a hysterical girl." _

_ "Really? Then you know what? Don't call me. Ever!"_

**_..._**

May swished her spoon around dismally around in her cereal, reminiscing her fight with Drew. It had happened yesterday. She couldn't believe his insensitivity. The nerve he had to think that she was lazing around in Aria! He was so ignorant sometimes. Then again, he could've just been on edge due to the Wallace Cup in Hoenn. Sometimes before Contests, May and Drew would get into nasty arguments due to the tension. But he nonetheless made her angry.

It had now been exactly one month since May's family had moved into the Aria region; their ranch was flourishing now, with plenty of Pokémon and expanded farmland. They were getting great production of Pokémon eggs, milk, cheese, and other resources and exports generated an immense income. May had to admit, excluding her situation with Drew, that her time in Aria had been pretty good so far. She was learning more and more about caring for the Pokémon and obtained a Pokémon egg from one of the Mareep. Max was slightly less annoying, SLIGHTLY, and her Pokémon seemed to be getting more fit from the work as well. Best of all though, were her family and friends. She would bond with her father during yard work and her mother with work around the house, and she and Max fought less than before. As for friends, May had become very close to Iris, Cilan, Dawn, Barry, Brock, and Autumn already, from hanging out in town to simple visits and park retreats. But out of all of them, she was closest to Ash, whom she saw almost every day.

Over the past month after her three week settling period, she and Ash had literally done everything together. It was Ash who had really taught May how to handle the ranch Pokémon and care for them. He had even taught her how to milk a Miltank. He showed her around town from the best restaurants to some great shops and markets. May had gotten to know most of his Pokémon, especially Pikachu, who was now very attached to her. Despite their constant company of one another, the two of them rejected any kind of notion of them being more than friends. This was a matter they had learned to avoid primarily, unless they were joking with one another, but even then it was an uncomfortable subject. The problem was, May knew deep down inside that Ash was particularly special to her, but she wouldn't attempt anything that might ruin their kindred friendship.

May sighed as she tried to eat her now soggy cereal, taking slow bites and shaky gulps. _Don't call me. Ever! _She replayed her exact words in her head and then frowned. She knew they hadn't broken up, but she also knew it would be quite a while until they started speaking to each other again. May suddenly pushed her cereal away from her and stood up abruptly. She couldn't keep dwelling on it, nor would she accept the blame. He was the one who had been rude, why should she feel bad? She now strode out of the kitchen, her head fuming with curses at Drew.

"I do plenty…!" she muttered as she walked past the living room, heading for the back door. Max was sitting on the couch reading a book and shook his head at her smugly.

"Don't keep talking to yourself, May. People might start to think that you're crazy—Oh wait!" he snickered.

"Can it, Max," May retorted curtly before stomping out the door. A little yard work would take her mind off of things for sure.

**...**

"That takes care of that!" May dusted herself off in satisfaction and stepped back, admiring her work of feeding every Pokémon in the barn, from Miltank and Grumpigs to Torchics and Ruffets. It had been a tough job, but she had done it. And it took her mind off of Drew. Norman didn't even help this time, as he and Caroline were spending the day in the South Fork visiting another ranch. The ranch hands they had hired had completed a lot of the produce collecting work a couple of days ago and had the day off, so there was nothing else really to be done today other than feeding the Pokémon.

May sighed and looked over at her rose-gold wristwatch. It was only noon. She groaned and stepped out of the barn in frustration. There had to be something to do around here. As she swung open the barn doors, she looked up and gasped.

There were four, large Bouffalant still outside grazing, not paying any heed to May.

"How did—?" she stammered, but then she remembered. Her father had said before he left that he had let out some of the Pokémon to graze for a while early in the morning. She forgot that it was her job to make sure they were back in the barn afterwards, but May never suspected it would be the Bouffalant. She figured they would be Miltank; she didn't even see them when she walked into the yard earlier. Then again, the ranch fields were so vast, they could have been anywhere. Heck, it took May almost ten minutes to get all the way to the barn.

May groaned again in monotony. Granted, it WAS something to do, but did it have to be the Bouffalant? They were extremely difficult to deal with, especially for May, who still wasn't very experienced in taking care of them. She sighed and then straightened herself up in resolve. She was going to do this. She was going to prove that she did a fair amount of work.

"Alright Bouffalant, time to go back to the barn now!" she ordered as sternly as she could. They didn't even look up at her. May moaned in annoyance and then pointed at the barn.

"Come on now! You've had enough! Go back to your barn!" she commanded. The Bouffalant still kept on grazing leisurely, which crossed her even more.

"Alright then, I guess I'm going to have to make you move!" she hissed and rolled up the sleeves of her white cardigan. She trudged over to one of them and pushed it as hard as she could, mustering up all of her strength.

"Come—on—you!" she struggled as she tried to move the massive Bouffalant, yet it stayed put, paying no attention her.

"Mock me, will you?" she grumbled in her fruitless efforts. She finally gave up, panting in exhaustion. Those Bouffalant had to weigh about a ton! May looked up at them in utter distress, feeling helpless.

"You're not going to get anywhere with those tiny arms!" someone suddenly called. May recognized him innately and smirked weakly, turning around to see Ash sitting on the fence with a smug look on his face. He was wearing a white button-up shirt with an open russet-brown vest and a pair of black jeans with dark brown boots. On his hands were the same pair of black fingerless gloves and of course he wore his trademark baseball cap, except this one was black and blue with half of a white Poké Ball.

"Who are you calling tiny?" she demanded in playful vexation. Ash chuckled and slid off the fence, coming to meet her. He stood up close to her and looked down at her with a smirk.

"You," he smiled coolly while May looked up at him, her eyes wide. She blushed a bit and then pushed him comically.

"Well excuse me, meathead." She sneered while he laughed. She turned back to the Bouffalant and sighed, sinking her shoulders feebly. Ash stepped up beside her with his hands on his waist.

"Where's Pikachu?" she asked.

"He's taking a nap; I figured I'd stop by for a quick visit. So what's with the Bouffalant herd?" he queried. May moaned in despair.

"Dad asked me to move Pokémon back into the barn that he had let out earlier, but I had no idea they would be Bouffalant…" she muttered forlornly. Ash patted her back consolingly and walked up to them.

"Heh, Bouffalant are pretty adamant. It's hard to get them to do anything let alone move. Training them can be a hassle. We have a couple, but they're a lot older so they've tamed up quite a bit over the years with training." He explained. May folded her arms, pensive. These were relatively young Pokémon as they had only been on the ranch for about two weeks.

"Well, what do we do now?" she asked. Ash gave her a playful smile.

"Hey, your Dad never asked me to put them back in the barn," he said.

"Oh, come on Ash! Look at me! I can't do this on my own!" she exclaimed as she held her arms out for him to observe her. She was wearing navy blue tube-topped jumper shorts with a pair of small white wedge sandals and a white cardigan. She wasn't wearing her bandana, but a small navy blue ribbon on the side of her head. Aside from that, she was much smaller and slender compared to Ash's rough-and-tumble bulky build and towering height.

He laughed again and shook his head.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to wear heels while doing yard work?" he folded his arms with a smirk. May stuck her nose up in the air.

"I can still work! You should see, I fed all of the Pokémon today! ALL of them!" she declared. Ash nodded in approval.

"Wow, pretty good. I can't believe you're managing the heavy food load without me now," he grinned at her amused. May smiled smugly and punched his arm.

"I'm getting stronger!" she said.

"Yet you couldn't move the Bouffalant," Ash replied in an as-a-matter-of-factly tone.

"I'd like to see you try," May challenged. Ash smiled in acceptance and then pulled on his black gloves tighter.

"Sure thing!" he beamed and then stepped up to the same Bouffalant May had tried to move.

"No hard feelings buddy," he told the Pokémon before position his hands on its enormous torso and giving it an enormous shove. May gasped at his prevalent strength. Ash was obviously using a lot of force, but the Bouffalant was definitely moving; for one, it looked up immediately with a bothered look on its face. It soon staggered backward as Ash applied a huge wave of strength into the push, moving it out of place. Ash himself swung backwards, but stayed standing, watching in satisfaction at his work. May's face was bright and she was utterly impressed.

"You did it!" she cried enthusiastically. Ash turned his head toward her and flashed her a dapper smile.

"Told you, now we just have to get these guys in the—"

"Wait, Ash! Look!" May yelled out, her voice was serious now. They now both looked at the Bouffalant, who were all lined up now and pawing at the ground ferociously, a rage-filled look in their eyes. Ash widened his eyes as May covered her mouth in horror.

"Uh-oh…" May stuttered. Ash quickly turned tail and dashed toward her, grabbing her hand.

"No time for that!" He yelled and took off running, dragging her along with him. The Bouffalant roared angrily and charged at them mercilessly.

"AAH!" they shouted in panic as the enormous Pokémon ran at them with their horns aimed.

"Didn't you bring any of your Pokémon with you?" May shouted as they bolted all around the field.

"No! I thought it would be a friendly visit!" he yelled back anxiously. May's jaw dropped in disbelief.

"What?" she screamed back. Ash pouted at her.

"What about you? You live here! Where are your Pokémon?" he snapped. May gave him a sheepish look.

"I didn't think I'd need!" she smiled weakly while Ash groaned. The Bouffalant were still in hot pursuit of them, roaring out incessantly. Ash seemed to have had enough and quickly looked around, spotting the pond.

"I'm not taking this, brace yourself May!" he shouted and suddenly veered off in a curve toward the pond, still holding her hand tightly. May widened her eyes.

"Ash, you're not going to—"

"GERONIMO!" he hollered and leaped up, bringing May along with him.

"ASH!" she cried out in protest and the two landed in the pond with a loud _splash!_ The Bouffalant slid to an abrupt spot and dashed away as enormous waves of water splattered near them. There was a small silence, until suddenly; they burst out of the surface, sputtering water from their mouths. Ash and May were soaked and huddled together in the pond, shivering furiously. Ash's hat had fallen off in the midst of the frenzy and was now floating around in the water.

"Y-you idiot! Why you d-do that?" May demanded shakily as she tried to hug her now sopping wet cardigan over her cold figure. Ash gave her a trembling grin.

"Th-they would've chased us for hours if I h-hadn't!" he exclaimed. May smiled weakly and then ran her fingers through her drenched hair.

"Great, it took me an hour to do my hair today!" she snarled. Ash shrugged apologetically while May just scowled at him. His face softened and he chuckled again.

"Oh come on! You look nice either way!" he pointed out. May turned pink suddenly and stared at him. He was smiling as if he viewed his comment with little meaning; but to May, it meant a lot.

"Th-thanks," she replied bashfully. She gazed at Ash, his dark hair now dripping. He was in utter disarray, yet he looked cute, with his wet locks and amused expression. May couldn't help but giggle.

"What?" he asked, smiling. May shook her head and just splashed him, laughing even more. Ash swam backwards in a recoil and then looked back at her with devious eyes.

"Oh so you want to play it that way, huh?" he smirked and splashed her back, causing her jaw to drop.

"You're on!" she laughed and splashed him again, inciting a playful battle in the pond. It was absurd, but loads of fun. At one point, Ash had dunked May into the water, only to be dragged in himself. Both of them emerged, spitting out water and laughing together in elation. They both panted and relaxed themselves finally.

"That's—that's enough f-for today," Ash huffed, yet he began to shiver again. May nodded shakily in agreement but suddenly noticed his floating baseball cap. She quickly swam over to it and grabbed it, swimming back to him.

"I believe this is yours!" she exclaimed and swum up closer to him, placing it on top of his soaking head.

"Thanks!" he said, wiping water away from his eyes. Then he stopped and stared at her for a moment, gazing at her with soft amber eyes. It was then May realized the close proximity they were in. She was nearly pressed up against him, the gap was so narrow. But she didn't move back. She could've, but she didn't. She just stared into his kind, amber eyes.

"I-I guess we should get out now…" he suddenly broke the trance, causing May to shake her head and look down, her face turning red again.

"Y-yeah, let's," she said. Ash pulled himself out of the pond; he was soaked entirely, from head to foot. His white shirt was so wet that his bare chest was more visible underneath, showing off his impressive abs and chest muscles. He reached out his hand to May and brought her out of the water with one, strong pull, helping to her feet. They were both shivering furiously. Ash looked at May, who couldn't stop shaking and then pulled off his brown vest, draping it over her quickly while she looked at him with wide eyes.

"Not much, but it helps a little," he smirked. May shakily laughed and then tugged on his arm.

"Come on, let's go dry up at my house, "she said.

"I could just go back home and get some clean clothes," Ash replied, but May shook her head.

"My house is closer, and you're already shivering. Come on, you can borrow my dad's clothes. He won't mind," she said and began to pull him toward the back door. The whole way over, May couldn't stop thinking about that strange silent moment in the pond together. That was the closest she had ever been to Ash. She blushed as she replayed the image in her head and hastily went on, dragging Ash along with her.

**...**

Max was still sitting on the couch reading when the back door swung open and he heard squeaky footsteps. He turned around and gasped as sopping May and Ash trudged in, shivering like crazy.

"Whoa! What happened to you two?" Max exclaimed as he dropped his book and ran over to them.

"Hey Max!" Ash smiled at him. May smiled nervously.

"We ran into a little trouble, Max…" she trailed off as Max began to snicker.

"Yeah, ran into a pool! Did you guys fall into the pond or something?" he chortled. Ash scratched his head.

"Something like that," he said. Max gave them a smug grin.

"Uh-huh…" he turned around snickering whilst looking back at May, who just glared at him.

"Come on Ash, we have some clean towels upstairs." She said as she lead him to the foyer.

"You two kids play nice now!" Max sneered. He was met with a swift throw of a cushion to the face.

**...**

Ash sat on the edge of the bathtub, drying his hair with one of the towels May had given him. He swung his dark locks out of his face and looked up at the door opened and May walked in. She was now wearing a white V-neck sweater with the sleeves rolled up and a pair of baby-blue shorts, but no bandana. Her hair was still wet, but showed gradual signs of drying. In her arms were dry, folded clothes.

"Here, you can change into these," she said, holding them out to Ash. He took them graciously and thanked her, watching as May walked out of the bathroom and shut the door behind her.

"I looked outside. It looks like the Bouffalant finally went back into the barn. I asked Max to close the doors," she said as she took a seat on her sitting window.

"That's good!" Ash called from the other side of the door. May felt the blood rush to her cheeks again. Ash was in her bathroom, changing. It was all strange to her. The two had become good friends, but after what had happened in the pond, she felt a bit strange.

"Hey Ash?" she called.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for saving us from the Bouffalant," she said coyly. It had occurred to her that she had never really thanked him for saving both of their hides. The bathroom door then opened, and out came Ash dressed in Norman's clothes with the towel draped around his neck.

"No problem. We would've both been broken bone heaps otherwise," he chuckled. He was now wearing a black T-shirt and a pair of gray track pants. His baseball cap had dried thanks to May's blow dryer and now he wore it again. She almost laughed when he walked out. They were slightly more fitted on Ash than her father.

"Man, wearing your dad's clothes feels so weird." He said as he flopped down on her bed with his hands locked behind his head in a relaxed manner. May giggled.

"The way he goes on about you, he'd probably give them to you!" she smiled. It was true. Norman and Ash had a very amiable relationship. May was beginning to think that Norman treated Ash like his son. They would help one another considerably with ranch work and they had even trained some of the Pokémon together. May felt good knowing that her family was becoming attached to Ash; after all, he was her closest friend now.

Ash marveled at the comfort of May's bed, before turning his head to see the small picture frame on her nightstand. He sat up and observed it closely.

"Hey May, is this Drew?" he asked, pointing to the picture. May blinked in surprise and then her expression softened.

"Yeah…That's us on my sixteenth birthday. We had a party at my dad's gym." She said, sitting up suddenly and walking over. Ash immediately noticed the drop in her mood.

"But it was a long time ago…" she said, placing the frame face down and the sitting on the bed next to Ash, who was laying on the bed. He sat up further and looked at her with gentle eyes.

"Is something wrong, May?" he asked. She bit her lip and didn't reply, causing him to scoot up next her and sit down.

"Come on, you can tell me. We're friends," he continued. May sighed and looked at him with dreary eyes.

"It's nothing…It's just that—Drew and I kind of got into an argument yesterday…" she trailed off and looked down sadly. Ash kept a steady gaze on her.

"What about?" he asked.

"Well…It's kind of dumb, but I got mad at him for not calling or picking up for that last couple of weeks and then he got upset, saying he was too busy preparing for a Contest. Then he said that I didn't work as hard as he did, which is why I got angry. Then I told him never to call me again…" she murmured, hugging her legs to her body. Ash was quiet for a moment, but then smiled at her softly.

"You shouldn't worry, May. He's probably on edge because of the Contest. I mean, back when I used to compete in tournaments, I would get really snappy at everyone before major battles out of stress. I doubt he really thinks that." said Ash. May looked up at him in disbelief, but he continued.

"You're his girlfriend May, that means you're extra special to him. I don't think he really meant those things. He probably feels really bad about talking to you like that. Deep down, he must know how lucky he is to have you," Ash smiled and put his hand on May's shoulder, who just stared at him wide-eyed.

"Ash…" she stammered. He stood up and stretched, flexing his muscles.

"So don't go beating yourself up over it. Long distance relationships are tough. Any relationship can be tough, believe me_; I know…" _he said as he walked up to May's sitting window and gazed outside at the field. May's ears perked up. He knew? Did that mean what she thought it meant? If that was the case, then somewhere sometime, Ash was probably involved with somebody. His looks and demeanor were all winning details about him; any girl would be attracted to Ash. It wasn't surprising really, but now she was curious. Who was she? Or was there even a she? As Ash turned around to face her, May quickly pushed the subject out of her mind.

"I guess you're right about that…I mean he does get tense before Contests…" she added. Ash turned back to her, his eyes bright.

"See? I'm sure things will turn up soon. So don't be upset, or else I'll have to do your yard work for you." He grinned. May smiled shyly and then looked back down.

"Thanks a lot Ash…" she breathed, her voice full of gratitude. He flashed her a brilliant white smile.

"Don't mention it," he said. Just as May was about to say something, the door to her room flew open and Max trudged in. As soon as he saw Ash, his jaw dropped.

"Whoa Ash! You're wearing Dad's clothes? Haha, they don't even fit you right!" he snickered. May groaned and picked up a pillow.

"Get out, or I'll discipline you with this!" she growled, pointing at the pillow. Max gave her a smug look.

"I'll just tell Mom and Dad then!" he retorted.

"Heh, you wish! When they're out, I'M in charge, so buzz off!" she hissed.

"Guys, guys! Calm down!" Ash tried in his best efforts to end the bickering. Max walked up and stood beside Ash.

"Yeah, May! Calm down!" he snapped in a mocking tone. May glowered at him.

"He meant you, Pipsqueak!" she yelled.

"Okay okay, why don't we all calm down and watch a show or something?" Ash suggested, in hopes of settling things down. Max immediately brightened up.

"Okay! Come on, Ash! Let's watch some battles I taped!" he said eagerly and pulled on Ash's arm.

"Okay!" he said, meeting his enthusiasm. May just blinked in astonishment as Max dragged Ash downstairs, chattering away about all of the battles he has ever recorded. She rolled her eyes and then slipped off of her bed, following after them. As she closed the door behind her room, all that was racing through her head was what Ash meant. _Believe me; I know…_She couldn't get over his words. Could Ash have really been talking about someone he was once with? She knew he didn't have a girlfriend now, he had told her once when they were shearing the Mareeps' excess wool. She remembered it very clearly:

_"Look at you with those big muscles! Carrying Mareep like its nothing!" May teased as she collected the excess pile of wool, marveling at its softness. _

_ "Heh, this is nothing. I had to hold a Tauros back once when it became enraged." He chuckled. May smirked at him. _

_ "I bet all of the girls in town look at that! So tell me, Ash, do you have a girlfriend?" she asked playfully, however deep down she felt a bit of discomfort asking him. She immediately regretted it. Ash's expression softened as he set down the Mareep and began to gently pet it. _

_ "Nah, not at the moment…" He replied. It was after that where he seemed to go into deep thought. May, surprising to her, felt a bit of relief. But she shouldn't have felt that way. She should've been happy at the prospect of Ash having a girlfriend, but deep down she knew it made her uncomfortable. Guilt washed over her as she thought of Drew. _

_ "Wow, looks like this one's got some spark!" Ash exclaimed suddenly, changing the subject. May whirled around and smiled contentedly as she watched him begin to play with the Pokémon. The subject slipped from her mind thankfully as she went over to them to join the fray. _

May pondered Ash's words from that day. He had to have been referring to somebody. But who? What bothered her most was the fact that she was even concerned about it at all. She couldn't help but be curious about Ash's love life though; he knew about hers so far. That was another thing. It was hard enough that she and Drew were having issues, but the fact that she was constantly hanging around with Ash made her feel even guiltier. She wasn't cheating on him, but it wasn't exactly fair for her to constantly be with another guy, especially one that made her nervous. Over the past month, May had finally come to terms that she was indeed attracted to Ash a little, but told herself strictly that it was only a physical attraction. She stringently saw him as her friend, and she was sure he felt the same way. At least she was pretty sure. Besides, the one thing she feared most was to somehow ruin her friendship with Ash by letting feelings get in the way. Not that there were any feelings, but she was still wary of it.

May sighed as she walked over to the rail of the stairs. The upstairs hallway was designed as such that anyone upstairs could walk over to the rail of the central loop and peer down into the living room. As she looked down, she watched Ash and her brother as they were seated on the couch. Max was as garrulous as ever, going on and on about the battle they were watching and describing every little detail to Ash, who just sat patiently and listened on.

May smiled softly at them. She knew Max looked up to Ash especially. Whenever he was around, Max would try every way to impress him, from showing off his vast knowledge of Pokémon to describing the type of team he would have. Ash was very accommodating towards him as well. He was very brotherly to Max and even let him play with his Pokémon, mostly his Corphish, who Max had a particular affinity for. They had a sibling-like relationship; however the latter was a bit more respectful than May's relationship with Max.

"Oh! Watch this part, you won't believe this Venonat! Its stun spore was so powerful that the Tropius couldn't move anymore! Its trainer couldn't even use it for the second round!" Max exclaimed. Ash chuckled.

"That's impressive," he agreed whilst nodding. May smiled at them and then began to descend down the stairs. She thought about what Ash had said about Drew; he was right about some relationships have issues, but she couldn't help but still be angry with him. Upon reciting their argument in her head, she became even more annoyed. She refused to let anybody tell her that she was less than them, especially her own boyfriend. She suddenly felt better at the prospect of not speaking to him for a while. He deserved it, and she had to push the entire conflict out of her head. As she finally reached the bottom of the stairs that lead to the living room, she walked over to the couch and plopped down beside Max, who now sat between her and Ash.

"Hey May, you'll like this battle, there's a Blaziken in it!" Max exclaimed and he descended into his usual chatterbox demeanor. May just sighed and smiled leisurely, forgetting about Drew and letting her mind settle with Ash and her brother.

**...**

Watching Max's battle replays got old really fast. May, who now stared at the blaring screen dully with her hands planted into her hands, just sighed wearily as she tried to stay awake. It had been hours since she had sat down with him and Ash to watch just one battle, and now here they were like zombies on a couch. May yawned and then sat back, gazing dryly at Max before her expression softened. She hadn't noticed it before, but he was sleeping now, against Ash's shoulder, his chest slowly rising and falling in rhythm. She should have known when his incessant talking had come to an end, but she was probably groggy from all of it herself and just forgot about it. She looked up to see Ash, who to her surprise was still wide awake. She wiped her eyes, and then gazed at him.

Ash was fixated on the television, just watching the endless replays of Pokémon battles. May recognized that same look in his eyes back in Relique Weald: Passion. His amber eyes were ablaze, so resolute and so enlivened. May just blinked in astonishment. Ash still loved to battle. It was obvious, the way he enthusiastically accepted challenges and his love of training; however, that was something he rarely talked about with May. Whenever she brought up hints toward his high trainer status, he would always effectively avoid speaking of it, and he did so in a way where May didn't realize it until afterwards. He could even do that with Max, who was the most inquisitive of all. The question was: Why was Ash so reluctant to discuss himself? Then again, May had never really asked him about it directly; she would only make small references to him being a trainer. She had never thought to ask him up front though, feeling that it was probably something best unmentioned. She decided to push the thought further out of her head. The last thing she wanted to do was be like Max and start hammering him with questions. He probably had enough of that earlier in the day.

"I can't believe you're still awake…" May yawned. Ash finally tore his eyes away from the screen and gave her a smirk.

"I can't believe you're sleepy. It's only seven o' clock." He said smugly. May blinked in surprise.

"Seven o' clock? I can't believe we've been watching these reruns for that long!" she exclaimed. They had only sat down to watch television in the afternoon. Ash shrugged.

"It was Max who wanted to; he's got a lot of energy," he said. May sighed and then smiled at her dozing brother, reaching out her hand and caressing his forehead.

"Not that much. I like him this way, he's not as obnoxious." She giggled. Ash shook his head at her comically and then patted Max on the back.

"He's really great though. I've never had a younger sibling. It's kind of nice," he smiled. May's jaw dropped in disbelief and then she began to laugh, shaking her head.

"Heh, that's only because you're not related to him! Trust me; it's not all fun and games. You've seen us!" she exclaimed. Ash thought for a moment and then upon coming to realization, nodded wide-eyed.

"Boy, have I," he laughed. May just shook her head and then stood up and stretched. She then turned her gaze back to Max again.

"We'd better get him to his bed. I guess he really tuckered himself out with the amount of talking he does," she said. Ash stood up slowly, carefully as to not wake him and then hoisted him up into his arms.

"Come on, let's take him to his room," said May, leading Ash upstairs. They briefly passed the halls and then May's bedroom, arriving at a door with a picture of the Hoenn starter Pokémon taped to it. May opened the door quietly and then flicked on the lights, revealing Max's room. It was massed with Pokémon products; from posters to merchandise, his room was head to toe, Pokémon. Ash glanced around in awe while May quickly walked over to his matchbox bed and pulled back the covers. Even the bedding was Pokémon themed, with sheets that had Castform on them and a pillow covered in a pattern of Wurmple.

"Wow, this is amazing!" Ash whispered loudly as scanned the room wide-eyed.

"Okay, just set him down here," May whispered back, gesturing Ash over to the bed. Ash nodded and then walked over to her, setting Max down gently on the bed while May pulled the covers over him.

"Nighty night, Max," she smiled warmly and then she and Ash stepped out of the room, turned off the lights and shut the door.

"What an awesome room," Ash said as they traveled down the stairs again.

"Yeah, Max can't wait until he gets his own Pokémon." May replied.

"I still got to take him back to the East Fork to get a Pokémon. There are a bunch of great Pokémon there suited for beginners." said Ash. May smiled.

"That's really nice of you, Ash. I really appreciate you doing so much for him. You know back home, he didn't have that many friends. I felt bad…" May said as the finally reached the living room again and sat back down on the couch.

"Really?" Ash asked. May nodded.

"Max has always been a really smart kid. When he hung out with the other kids, he just didn't seem to fit in with them. He was more into reading than anything. It was hard for him to make friends with kids of his own age group because of how smart he was. A lot of them felt inferior and just refused to play with him," May said, looking down sadly. Ash's gaze softened and then he leaned back with his hands behind his head leisurely.

"You know, Max is a really great kid. Kids often tend to be hard on those who are different, especially if they feel lower on some point. We ought to take Max to meet some of the kids in the South Fork. He might make some friends there. I know most of them too. I think they would all get along pretty well," Ash said, giving her a wink. May looked at Ash wide-eyed. There he was, helping her yet again. It was as if he was a guardian angel or something; always coming to her in need. She quickly shook that thought out of her head, turning red.

"Gee Ash, thanks. I think that would mean a lot to him," she smiled. Ash went back into his relaxing position.

"Not a problem…" he said placidly. May looked at him for a moment and then grabbed the visor of his head, bringing it down further over his eyes.

"Take that, Mr. Nappy," she smirked. He just smiled and sunk even deeper into a docile position.

"I think your parents would freak if I fell asleep here, "he chuckled. May laughed and shook her head.

"Dad would probably bring you a blanket and pillow," she giggled.

"Can I steal one of Max's?" he asked amusingly. As he began to lower his head, May let out a sharp breath and glared at him.

"Come on Ash, don't fall asleep yet! It's only seven!" she chided. Ash just groaned and sunk into the couch even further, causing May to sigh in annoyance.

"Okay, let's see how you like this!" she snickered and grabbed his hat, swiping it away from him. Ash jerked upward and watched as May waved his hat in front of him mockingly.

"Come on May! Not the hat!" he called out playfully. She stuck her tongue out at him and then raced for the back door.

"You're going to have to take it from me then!" she giggled and then scampered outside.

"Oh you're on!" Ash grinned and scurried up, running along after her. He chased her on out into the field, both of them laughing.

"You're slower than I thought!" May cried jovially as she dodged his every attempt to grab his hat.

"You're faster than I thought!" he called back. May just laughed and then waved his hat in his face, putting it on her head and then heading for the Giant Oak.

"Let's see you try to catch me when I go up the Oak!" she teased. As she neared the tree, she quickly climbed over the fence separating her and Ash's ranch land and then hastily brought herself up onto the tall limb, sitting down with a triumphant look on her face. Ash, who arrived shortly at the base of the tree just stopped and looked up at her in disbelief.

"Who knew you were such a good climber?" he huffed as he stared straight up at her. May took off his hat and waved it in front of him playfully.

"Looks like I win!" she beamed. Ash shook his head and then gave her a smile.

"Okay okay, I surrender! Now can I have it back?" he asked. May thought for a moment and then released the hat from her grip, letting it flutter down into his arms. He quickly placed it on top of his head and then looked back up at her.

"Are you going to come down?" he asked as his hands went on his waist.

"Well, I kind of have to!" May yelled back in a sardonic tone. She then began to move herself off of the limb.

"Be careful May!" Ash called out to her. May nodded nervously in affirmation. She was pretty good at climbing trees; it was getting down that was a problem. She could usually just slide off, but this tree was much higher up than she had really accounted for. She gulped as she began to motion back. Suddenly, she felt herself slip off of the limb and immediately panicked.

"Aah!" she cried out. She quickly stayed put in fear of falling.

"May! I'll catch you, just jump down!" Ash called. May, who was now gripping the limb on either side of her, looked down at him reluctantly.

"Trust me! I promise I won't let you get hurt!" he called out with a reassuring smile. May bit her lip and then nodded, carefully sliding herself off of the tree until she felt herself descending quickly. She stifled a scream until she slammed into Ash, who surprisingly remained standing. He had caught her, just like he said he would. Ash quickly lowered her to her feet and then gave her a concerned look.

"Are you okay?" he asked. May was mesmerized. She couldn't believe he had just caught her in that fall. He said he would, but she expected him to fall backwards or something. Now here she was, caught in his arms and close up against him, looking into his deep amber eyes.

"Y-yeah, thanks…" she stammered. Ash sighed in relief and then released her. May just blinked at him in surprise.

"What is it?" he asked.

"How on earth did you stay standing? Most guys would've been on their backs crippled!" she exclaimed. Ash just smiled coyly.

"You're just so light, I could carry you for hours and not feel a thing," he replied. This made May blush furiously.

"W-well I'm not that small!" she protested. Ash smirked at her and then stepped up closer to her, peering down at her playfully. May could feel the warmth radiating off of him as he just smiled down at her. He was literally the definition of tall, dark and handsome. She just wished she would stop thinking of him like that.

"Are you?" he asked. She suddenly realized how close they were and then turned away from him, pouting.

"I'm kidding! It's just so much fun to mess with you sometimes. You're really cute when you're mad!" He said it again. And he always said it so casually! May turned to him with a scowl.

"Well…So are you!" she retorted weakly. Then she realized the fallacy in her argument. She couldn't remember when she last saw Ash ever mad or angry. In fact, she couldn't ever recall him being upset. He was always so upbeat and calm, even against the Bouffalant.

Ash laughed again and scratched his head.

"Okay okay, I'm sorry, May," he apologized. He had that bright smile on his face that made her heart race a little. She then softened and smiled at him gently.

"Oh can it, you big Snorlax. Come on, I think we have some noodles in the house. I'm starving!" she exclaimed grabbing him by the arm and pulling him over back toward her house. They leaped over the fence and continued back to the back door.

"Sounds great! Want me to cook?" he asked.

"N-no. Listen to me, Ash, don't ever ask me that again," she said.

"Oh come on, I'm not that bad, am I?"

"I couldn't even take a bite out of your brownies they were so overcooked!" she exclaimed as they walked on over. She and Ash both laughed as they walked along the field together.

The sky was dark now and laden with a sea of twinkling stars. As they walked back, May gazed over at Ash and his broad shoulders. He was as upbeat as ever. That's what she liked best about him; his positive demeanor and his will to encourage. She couldn't have ever imagined knowing someone like him. She was always thankful for having him around. No matter how bleak everything seemed, he managed to make it all better just by being around her. He had made her feel better after her rotten morning. Now as they walked back together, she had completely pushed Drew out of her mind, thinking only about Ash.

* * *

Hopefully that was a good amount of shippiness! I really wanted to focus on character development in this chapter. May's feeling conflicted over her feelings for Drew, but since they aren't going to speak for a while, she decides to put him out of her head for a bit and try and stay positive. The next chapter will be a bit more action-packed hopefully! You'll definitely learn more about Ash! Until next time, thanks for reading and reviewing!


	6. The Swimming Hole

Hi everyone! I know it's been ABSOLUTELY FOREVER since I last updated! I'm really sorry about the delay, I've got an incredibly busy schedule this summer! Anyways, I wrote this chapter with the intention of answering a lot of questions people have had about the story overall, and thought it may not answer every question, I was sure to reveal a lot here! I also really want to clarify that when I refer to Ash's muscular physique, don't think of an overly buff, Jojo Joestar / Dio Brando Dragon Ball Z kind of physique, he's just got a hot, muscular teenage boy body. Though I mean absolutely no offense to Jojo, Dio, or DBZ as I love them very much! And also, remember that this is a AU fic so things will be irregular! Also, I imply that Barry, Brock and Cilan are seen to have good bodily structure. Cilan was to be a bit more lean while Barry and Brock are more similar to Ash in burly and strong stature, but I'm still implying that Cilan is just as masculine and strong! Anyways, I'm really running on here, so please read and review! I hope you enjoy this chapter! I actually had a lot of fun writing it! So please read and please review! Your reviews keep me motivated and ultimately keep these chapters coming! And as I have said earlier, I will include the age listings for the characters since you all should all know them by now.

May Maple - 16 years old

Max Maple - 8 years old

Ash Ketchum - 17 years old

Brock Harrison - 20 years old

Autumn Aki - 20 years old

Barry Pearl - 17 years old

Dawn Berlitz - 16 years old

Cilan Dent - 19 years old

Iris Drake - 17 years old

* * *

**Chapter 6: The Swimming Hole**

"Come on May! Hurry up! Who cares about what you're wearing? We're going swimming!" May groaned as she heard Max's shrill call from outside of her bedroom. Whether it was swimming or not, she wasn't one to go out without primping herself. Her room was chimerical; clothes were beginning to obscure the floor and she couldn't even sit on her bed without several magazines slipping off onto the ground. She could barely walk without stepping on something as it was.

May trudged around her room in strain as she tried to gather her stuff. As Max had said earlier, he and May were off to go swimming with the group, who consisted of Ash, Iris, Cilan, Dawn, Barry, Autumn, and Brock. Ash had invited Max to come along, much to May's annoyance. Dawn, who had brought up the idea, told her that they'd be heading down to the West Fork to a place they called Wasser's Heart. Apparently, it was the name of a swimming hole in the West Fork, a spot in which they visited a couple of times a year. May and Max had never been to a swimming hole. Living in the city, it was rare for them to go swimming. Even when she was traveling around to Hoenn cities with Drew and her friends back home, they rarely stopped anywhere but shopping centers, Pokémon Centers, and of course, Contest Halls. She was curious as to what it would be like.

May heard Max groan from outside of her door and just rolled her eyes, stepping up to the long mirror to check her appearance. She wore a teal colored tank top with a pair of small jean shorts over her swimsuit, which was a pink bikini with matching swim shorts. For her shoes, she wore a simple pair of beige flip flops decorated with pink and blue flowers on the straps. On her head was a sky blue swimming cap, but it was placed on her head in such a way where it only covered the top and still showed off her brown tresses. It resembled the look of her bandana. She smiled slightly, satisfied with her look for the day and grabbed her blue drawstring bag with her Poké Balls inside, stepping outside of her room.

"Took you long enough!" snorted Max, who was sitting cross-legged by the stairs resting his chin on his hand in a bored way. He was wearing a white T-shirt and a pair of red swim shorts with an orange Poké Ball on the right leg. He had on a pair of black sandals and his green backpack was strapped on. His expression however was of disapproval as he glared at his sister. May narrowed her eyes at him accusingly.

"Like you've never delayed! Anyways, come on, we're supposed to get Ash." She said. Max stood up and followed her down the stairs. As soon as they reached the base, May called out

"Mom! We're going! We'll be back by nine at the latest, okay?" she yelled. Caroline quickly came into the foyer holding a pot and stirring what was probably dinner inside of it.

"Okay, but be safe! And make sure Max is always with you!" she ordered. May sighed and then nodded impatiently.

"Yes, Mom, I will!" she replied. Max pouted.

"I'm not a baby you know," he pointed out. Caroline smiled weakly at him.

"I know, I know—Ash will be with you, right? You're not going off on your own to West Fork? Because we still haven't been here too long and—"

"Yes, Mom! We're going with him, and he's not our body guard! We'd be just fine without him too!" May exclaimed. Max snickered.

"You? You can't even find the bathroom!" he laughed boorishly. May gritted her teeth in anger and then smiled as best she could at her mother.

"We'll be just fine, goodbye Mom!" she said under clenched teeth and grabbed Max aggressively by the arm, hauling him out the door.

"Goodbye kids! Have fun! And be safe! Oh, and tell Ash I say hello!" Caroline called out as she watched her kids walk down the cobblestone driveway. May nodded with her back turned and waved back whilst pulling her brother, who was now struggling to get out of her iron grasp.

"That hurts, let me go!" he shouted at her as they made their way down the main path. May released him, still irate and seething and quickened her pace toward Ash's house. Max followed up quickly to meet her pace.

"Man, I can't believe I get to hang out with you and your friends! Wait until they hear about all the dumb things you've done!" he laughed. May whirled around and glared at him.

"Max, I swear, if you embarrass me, I will put makeup on you while you sleep, take a picture and show it to everyone!" she snarled. Max gave her a smirk.

"Okay…" he sneered. May sighed in distress, knowing he probably wouldn't keep his mouth shut and just continued on towards Ash's. Max ran up to meet her pace again.

"So why didn't Ash come to pick us up? He always does…" Max asked.

"I told him not to. He's always coming to get us; I figured we should go to get him sometimes. Plus, I've never actually been to Ash's house…" she trailed off. As odd as it sounded, it was true; May had never been to Ash's house, only his ranch. The more she thought about it, the more she realized that she still knew so little about him. She neglected to ever ask Ash about himself or even if she could one day come over. It seemed like she constantly dragged Ash into her own affairs, from simple things about herself to staying for dinner. She had never bothered to ask him what he wanted. May suddenly felt selfish. Ash was always so compliant with her, she had never thought about his feelings.

"Well that's weird. It seems like he's always over at our house, you think we would've gone to visit him sometime." Max said as they continued down the path. May nodded slowly, letting her thoughts take over again. It was time she got to know Ash better.

…

"Whoa! I never knew Ash lived here!" Max exclaimed. After a little while of walking, May and Max had finally reached Ash's house, which was nothing they had expected. It was an enormous, two-story cabin house, similar to the Maples', but a bit more elongated. There was a large front porch in the front which held a rocking chair, a swing seat and two small tables all along the walkway. There was an extremely lengthy balcony on the second story that branched out to the three different rooms that were visible from the front. There were even stairs from the ground outside the front yard leading up to it. The lower half of the house was composed of gray stones while the upper half exhibited honey-colored wood. The house was a massive cabin, exuding elegance and comfort simultaneously.

Max gaped in awe at the splendor of the dwelling, while May just stared at it wide eyed. She had never really paid any attention to Ash's house, as they were either by the Giant Oak or the barns whenever she stepped foot onto his ranch. His family's land was entirely vast, to a point where it even took Ash about twenty minutes to get to his own house by walking from the barn. At least, that was what he had told her. She had never really wanted to make the trek, but now that she was here, she fully regretted not having visited sooner.

May and Max began to walk over towards the door. As they walked along the smooth driveway, May took notice of the other surroundings. There were two cars parked in the front: A large, black cruiser jeep and a dusky red truck. Their garden was just as lovely as the house, filled with red and yellow tulips along with apple blossom trees framing the building. There was a small fountain on the right side of the driveway that had a stone Goldeen with water spouting from its mouth. On the left side, May noticed a small yet beautiful tree. It was adorned with several white flowers with the ends of the petal tinged a purple color and a matching filament. She didn't know what type of flower they were, but they were magnificent.

The two finally reached the door. While Max gazed around the porch in awe, May cleared her throat and knocked on the door a couple times. Then she stood back, waiting for Ash to answer. She looked at Max to make sure he wasn't looking, and then quickly began to dust herself off and fix her hair up. The last thing she wanted was for Max to begin to tease her about primping herself up for Ash, especially in front of him.

"What an awesome place…" Max gushed as he came back to his sister's side, who had luckily finished arranging herself by the time he shifted his attention back to her. May nodded in agreement and then stood upright in surprise as she heard approaching footsteps. The door suddenly began to creek open and the two stepped back to see a small figure opening it. When the door swung open fully, their jaws dropped.

"Mime?" a curious, yet cute sounding voice perked. May and Max blinked, a Mr. Mime in the doorway staring back at them just as perplexed. It was wearing an apron and holding a broom. It blinked and then smiled joyfully.

"Mime! Mr. Mime!" it piped cordially. Max's eyes grew wide.

"Oh wow! A Mr. Mime! I didn't know Ash had one!" he exclaimed.

"Mimey? Who's at the door?" another voice asked suddenly. May and Max blinked in surprise again. They began to hear footsteps again and this time, the figure of a woman emerged. As she stepped into the light, May and Max got to see her better. She was a beautiful lady, with golden-brown eyes and long, auburn colored hair that was tied into a low pony tail. She wore a blue and white floral skirt that reached to her ankles and a matching blue sweater with a flower on the side. As soon as she saw them, she smiled widely.

"Oh hello there! You must be Ash's friends! He was expecting you!" she beamed kindly. Her voice was like butter. May stared in awe of her beguiling appearance. From her eye color, she could tell; this had to be Ash's mother. She suddenly felt more uptight and conscious. This was her first ever meeting with Ash's mom. She knew she had been away during the move, Ash had told her so earlier, but she didn't know she was already back. May wished she was wearing something a bit more covering now, feeling skimpily dressed in her tiny shorts and tank top.

"Y-yes, nice to meet you; I'm May, and this is my brother Max," May introduced her and her brother to the kind woman. Max gave her a small bow. Her eyes widened in enthusiasm.

"May and Max? Oh you're Norman and Caroline's children! I should have known! May, you look so much like your mother, do you know that? Oh I'm so thrilled to meet you! You know, I still have to invite you and your family to dinner! Ash has been telling me to, but it's been so busy here—Oh, I'm sorry, I never introduced myself!" she finally took a pause for a breath. She then straightened herself up and folded her hands together in a graceful fashion.

"My name is Delia, I'm Ash's mom! And this is Mimey, my sweet little helper!" she exclaimed sweetly, putting an arm around her Mr. Mime who waved at the siblings. May smiled at them. Delia was such an amiable woman; it was hard not to instantly be drawn to her.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Mrs. Ketchum!" May held out her hand. Delia shook it kindly and then gestured them inside.

"It's so nice to finally meet you kids as well! I'm so sorry I haven't been around to say hello, you see, I was away in the Kanto region for a while visiting a friend. Ash, he's such a sweet heart; he and the other ranch hands kept the place running so smoothly while I was gone! Come on in, he's probably upstairs!" she invited and brought them inside.

May glanced around Ash's house wide eyed. There was a long, spiraling stairwell leading to the second floor and the foyer was so cozy and warm with the many pictures and paintings up on the wall. Delia led them further into the house and then stopped in a room with a long, wooden table covered with a white cloth and two small, golden candelabras.

"Come! Have a seat kids! Mimey will get some snacks while we wait for Ash, he shouldn't be long! "Delia smiled as they sat down at the table. May tried to look as respectable as possible, sitting up straight with a polite expression on her face.

"So, Ash has told me so much about you two! I hear you were a Pokémon Coordinator back in the Hoenn region, May!" she exclaimed with shining enthusiasm in her eyes. May nodded nervously.

"Y-yes! I loved competing in Pokémon Contests," she answered. Delia nodded vigorously.

"Oh, how wonderful! Just like Ash! You know, he loves to battle! When he used to travel, he would compete in all kinds of tournaments! I would love to see your appeals some time!" she said excitedly. May laughed coyly while Mimey came walking in holding a silver tray of cookies and milk.

"Mime mime!" he smiled as he set the tray down on the table and then took his leave.

"Thank you Mimey!" Delia called. She then turned to Max.

"And Max! Ash tells me that you're a big fan of Pokémon!" she smiled. Max, who suddenly grew interested, smiled widely.

"You bet I am! Your Mr. Mime is so cool!" he exclaimed. Delia laughed, blushing slightly.

"Oh, why thank you! You ought to tell him that!" she giggled.

"Looks like you guys are enjoying yourselves!" someone called suddenly. They all turned toward the doorway of the room. There stood Ash, holding a tan colored bag over his shoulder with a smirk. Again, May was enthralled by his appearance. He was always so comely and well put together. He was wearing a pair of navy board shorts with small, leaf-like patterns on the sides in a lighter shade of blue and a pair of black and blue wading shoes. He was also wearing a thin, silver chain around his neck. He wore along with it, a white, button up collared shirt with mid-length sleeves that was left open, exposing his aesthetically exceptional build. May held back a hitched breath as she glanced at his sturdy abs and chest muscles. And of course, on his head was his baseball cap, the same black and blue one.

"Pikachu!" a familiar little voice squeaked. Ash's Pikachu came scampering down at his side and jumped up excitedly upon seeing the Maple siblings. Max lit up as soon as he saw the little Pokémon.

"Hi Pikachu!" he exclaimed as Pikachu leaped into his arms. Delia beamed elatedly at them and turned back to her son.

"Hello Ash! I was just talking to May and Max! It's so nice that we've finally gotten to meet," she turned back towards May and Max. I'm so sorry about my initial absence. But I'll make up for it! Sometime next week, you're all coming over here for dinner, and I won't take no for an answer!" Delia declared. May turned back toward her, finding it difficult to tear her gaze away from Ash. He chuckled and walked up to them, grabbing a cookie. May laughed a bit.

"We'd love to," May smiled. She knew her parents would definitely say yes. Ash bit into his cookie.

"Mom just got back from Kanto yesterday. I'm glad you all got to meet! But we should really get going now. We'll be late otherwise" he said, scratching his head. Delia nodded.

"Of course! You two, come over at any time! And we'll set up that dinner date soon!" she said as they all started to get up and push their chairs in. Max, who was now being tickled by Pikachu circling his shoulders, tried his best to speak without laughing.

"Th-thanks, Mrs. Ketchum!" he chortled as Pikachu climbed on top of his head. May shook her head at him and then turned back to Delia.

"Yes, thank you very much for the refreshments. We'll be sure to drop on by!" she smiled. Delia clapped her hands in delight and then held out the tray to them.

"Okay kids! You all have fun! Make sure you take some cookies with you! Oh, and make sure you take care of my Ash, okay?" she simpered. Ash groaned in embarrassment while May giggled.

"Of course we will," she laughed. Max hastily grabbed some cookies and began to feed one to Pikachu as they started to walk out.

"Splendid! Goodbye then! I'll see you later!" she called sweetly.

"Bye Mom! I'll be home before midnight!" Ash called back as they soon reached the foyer. He gave her an assuring smile and then opened the front door, allowing May and Max to step out first before following after them.

As soon as they reached the walkway, May let out a content breath.

"Wow, Ash! Your mother is so sweet! How come I haven't met her until now?" she inquired as she and Ash fell behind Max, who was now having a playful race with Pikachu. Ash scratched his head whilst smiling bashfully and then straightened up and met her gaze.

"Well, as she told you herself, she's been abroad, in Kanto, actually. She was visiting a friend of our family's who lives in Pallet Town. Apparently, he hasn't been feeling all too well…" he trailed off a bit. May frowned.

"I'm sorry to hear that," she said. Ash quickly shook his head and gave her a reassuring smile.

"Don't be. Mom said he was doing a little better by the time she left," he chuckled. May's expression softened a bit in relief. No matter what, Ash always seemed to carry himself in high spirits. He adjusted his hat a bit with his free hand and then continued.

"Also, I'm really sorry that haven't invited you over until now, things were a bit hectic, but now that Mom's here, it'll all be in order, plus, we've got that dinner she's planning. She makes a mean apple pie!" he smiled. May gazed up at him with bright eyes.

"Oh yeah! Your Mom told us you were directing the ranch pretty much on your own!" she said, her tone clearly impressed. Ash laughed humbly.

"Nah, I did a few things here and there, but if it weren't for the ranch hands, everything would have been a mess. Your dad was especially great help," he added. May remembered then that her father did often disappear into the Ketchums' land with Ash. She had initially believed that Ash was giving him pointers, but it was clear now that their relationship was equally symbiotic.

"I'm glad he was there!" she giggled. Ash just smirked at her and they continued walking, watching Max who was now eagerly chatting to Pikachu about the different moves he could learn.

"So Ash, what's the deal with this Waster's Heart place…?" May asked, curious about the swimming hole. Ash laughed and roughly ruffled the top of her head with his hand playfully.

"WASSER's Heart; and it's a swimming hole in the West Fork. We discovered it several years ago while exploring a forest. It was by accident really; Barry and I were racing and I tripped over a rock and fell. He kept going though and accidentally ran through a shrub and into the water subsequently." Ash smiled as he reminisced. May laughed and looked at him in disbelief.

"You guys had some competition going on between you, huh?" she inquired rhetorically. Ash chuckled softly.

"We were only eight years old then. We were so excited about it that we did some research on the place. We found out that it was called Wasser's Heart based on this old story about one of the ancient residents of Aria," he said.

"What's the story?" May asked, suddenly becoming interested.

"Well, the way the story goes is that there was a man named Wasser, and he was notorious for being the 'scrooge' of the region. Apparently, he was this huge introvert who rarely spoke to others in the community. People described him as 'cold' and 'harsh. He just wasn't a people person. Even though he didn't like people, there was one thing that he was famously fond of: water. Wasser was crazy about water Pokémon and swimming; in fact, he was said to be the best swimmer in all of Aria. They say that Wasser was the one who found the swimming hole in the first place. He and his Golduck found it while travelling to the Isle of Lyonesse in the West Fork. They say that it was the only place where Wasser would smile. Many years later, after his death, people started to call the spot 'Wasser's Heart' because it was widely believed that his heart was just a mere hole filled only with his love for water," Ash explained. May blinked in surprise at the story. It wasn't a very heartwarming story, but it was very intriguing to know that someone so brooding would value something so material like water.

"What a guy he was…I wonder how he'd feel, seeing us all partying in there…" May thought aloud. Ash laughed.

"He would probably drain the water," He snickered. He and May laughed and Ash began to step forward, taking the lead as soon as they reached the three-way fork in the path. Max stood by them with Pikachu in his arms.

"Okay guys, we're about to enter the West Fork now. Now I know you're both new to this particular side of Aria, so stay close and don't wander," he informed them. May and Max nodded and then began to follow after him. As Max ran up to Ash's side and began to talk to him, May stayed back and just gazed at them with a reverent look in her eyes. She hated herself for lapsing back into this thought, but she was admiring Ash's shoulders again, and how broad they were. He always stood with such valor and aplomb; it was hard not to view him with such high esteem. As he turned slightly while walking with Max, the flaps of his open shirt slipped back a bit and revealed his stalwart physique. May held back a breathy sigh, and began to blush again.

If anybody knew how strong Ash was, it had to be her. Though apparent by his muscular appearance, the extent of Ash's strength shocked May. For one, she had seen him force a Bouffalant out of its resting spot; he had also lifted May up effortlessly on numerous occasions, from pulling her out of the Pokémon pond in the ranch lands to catching her when she fell out of the Giant Oak without so much of a stagger. Even when he did yard work, he seemed to do it with such dexterity; it was almost as if he enjoyed it. Suddenly, images of him began to pop up into her head; _carnal_ images much to May's horror. She could just picture him, shirtless and sweat drenched with his captivating smirk and passionate gaze. May was beet red now and began to cough anxiously. Ash and Max turned around suddenly with concerned looks on their faces.

"Are you alright, May?" Ash questioned, slightly worried. May blushed even redder and shook her head hastily.

"Oh yeah! I'm fine! Don't worry about me!" she beamed disarmingly. The boys looked at each other questioningly before shrugging and then continuing on. May's shoulders slumped and she looked down in guilt. It was absolutely wrong for her to think the way she did about Ash. She had a boyfriend, and despite their current feud, she was still obligated to him. Ash was just her friend; her kindhearted, considerate, ATTRACTIVE friend. She sighed and looked up at him with hopeful eyes. Right now, Ash was her closest friend; their friendship meant a lot to her. He was always there when she needed someone and she felt elated whenever she was around him. However, the more time she spent with Ash, the guiltier she felt about her relationship with Drew. She wasn't cheating on him, but the thoughts she had about Ash weren't exactly faithful. May bit her lip in confliction and then looked back up at her handsome friend and her brother. They were laughing together and Ash began to mess up Max's hair playfully. Her gaze softened and she then smiled slightly. It was best to ignore the situation for a bit; face it later. For now, she was going to live in the moment.

**…**

It had been a little while since the three had set off into the West Fork. May had gone through the whole trek in utter amazement; the West Fork, though not as woody and flowery as the East Fork, was just as dazzling with its enormous watery setting. There were patches of shimmering ponds along with a flatter plains and taller grass fronds. The most abundant flowers seemed to be bright calla lilies, which were sprouted around pond mouths and stream borders. There were forests, but they were much smaller and the area as a whole was more wet and marshier. A bit farther off, May could make out a large rock point which seemed to mask another part of the West Fork. Along with the exquisite scenery, they also saw several Pokémon, mainly water types dwelling in all parts of the area. From Goldeen and Seaking hopping out of the streams to families of Azurill, Marill and Azumarill gathering around ponds, there were so many. Max looked as if he were going to have a heart attack, he was so excited.

They were now deep into a small, dewy forest. Ash, along with Pikachu who was now perched on his shoulder again, lead May and Max through the wet fronds and marshy grounds, making sure they were able to keep up. He suddenly began to slow down as they came to face an enormous rock slab that was a little taller than May.

"Well, it took a little while, but here we are!" he exclaimed proudly. May and Max blinked in confusion before Ash smirked at them and pushed the large leaves framing the slab away and disappeared behind them. The siblings' jaws dropped in disbelief and they neglected to follow until they heard Ash's friendly shout.

"What are you guys waiting for? Come on!" he called out. May gulped and then pushed the same leaves back, first allowing Max to go in before pushing her way over to them as well. As soon as they were behind the rock slab, her eyes widened in astonishment.

"Wow!" Max cried out in wonder, voicing May's exact thoughts. It was pure magnificence. In front of them stood an enormous, circular pool of shimmering cyan water, framed by the emerald growth of the forest around them and headed by small, but elegant waterfall dyeing the body in pure serenity. There were big, lilac lotus pods distributed unevenly throughout the water. There were also calla lily bunches sprouting up in sporadic patches around the land pieces decorating the swimming hole, along with shiny rocks gleaming in the spotlights of rayed sunbeams.

May was utterly mesmerized as she ogled the beautiful water setting, rubbing her eyes to make sure she wasn't dreaming. Ash and Pikachu smiled at her in acknowledgement.

"THIS is Wasser's Heart," he said as he held out his hand toward the swimming hole in a presenting fashion.

"It's beautiful…" she mused. It was truly ethereal; she didn't even imagine Wasser's Heart to be this lush in scenery.

"Hey! Watch it!" they heard suddenly. May quickly stepped up towards the edge of the rock ledge they stood on and grinned.

Down into the swimming hole she could already see her friends lounging around in the water. There in the water sat Brock, Autumn, Barry, Dawn, Cilan, and Iris, whom by the look on her face and the sound of the voice they heard, was most likely her yelling. They were spread out and about in the swimming hole. Brock and Autumn were in one area just sitting on what were probably more rocks slabs talking to one another while two Pokémon swam around them. One was a Miltank, and the other was a Marshtomp, which May knew of because it was native to her home region. Brock seemed to be wearing orange swim trunks while Autumn was dressed in a frilly red bikini. Cilan and Iris were splashing one another, followed by Iris beginning to swim after Cilan who was now laughing and escaping her. They also had a couple of Pokémon with them. There was one brown, fish like Pokémon swimming around and minding its own business supposedly while two other Pokémon, a dinosaur like pokemon with big eyes and horns and a black, white and yellow rodent one played together. Cilan wore a green pair of swim shorts and Iris wore a plum colored one piece with a built in skirt. Then there was Dawn, who was sitting on an island type rock slab in the center of the swimming hole with her feet in the water petting her Piplup, who was sunbathing. Barry was in the water, but rested his arms and head on the base of the island rock right next to her. Swimming nearby them was a large Empoleon, who seemed to be lying leisurely in the water. Barry was wearing a black and gray pair of board shorts while his girlfriend was dressed in a white bikini with a sarong tied bottom. They always looked polished, just like Ash. It was then that Dawn suddenly looked up and saw Ash, May, Max and Pikachu and began to wave excitedly at them.

"Hey! Guys, down here!" she called out. May smiled at her and waved back. Soon, everyone turned to see them.

"Well, it's about time, Ash! You're always late these days!" Barry scoffed as he turned around to look at him. Ash shrugged sheepishly in return.

"Come on down! The water's great!" Autumn yelled.

"We'll be right down!" May called back. She set her blue bag down next to the barrier rock and pulled out a Poké Ball before quickly stripping herself of her clothes and shoes. She now stood in her pink bikini and shorts, smirking at her brother and Ash.

"How do I look?" she asked playfully. Ash smiled nervously. He almost looked as if he were blushing, which made her feel triumphant. Max on the other hand just laughed.

"Like a plank board wearing a pink swimsuit!" he snickered. May glowered at him angrily and began to trudge up to him.

"Why you little—"however, Ash quickly got between them.

"Come on, guys! Everyone's waiting, no time for that!" he said quickly. May rolled her eyes and then folded her arms, smirking at them.

"Then you'd better take off the excess clothing, or they'll get wet," she said, staring specifically at Max. He rolled his eyes and then slipped off his green backpack, taking off his white shirt and glasses and dropping them into his bag. He then placed it next to May's.

"Oh yeah, thanks for the reminder!" Ash exclaimed as he dropped his tan bag on the ground. Then he slipped off his opened white button-up and let it fall to the ground. May gulped as she stared at him. She had only seen Ash shirtless on two occasions; the first time was when she was watching him and her father round up the Tauros one hot afternoon. He had taken it off due to the heat, and May had almost drooled so she went inside under the pretense that it was too hot out. And it was a very, VERY _hot._ This was her second time seeing him without a shirt, and it was overwhelming. May just stared at his lithe and strong form, her cheeks beginning to turn pink before someone abruptly interrupted her thoughts.

"What's taking you all so long? Come down already!" May heard Iris shout at her. She shook herself back to reality and then nodded.

"We're coming!" Ash called back. He took off his hat and then grabbed his bag, stuffing his hat and shirt inside and then took out four Poké Balls.

"Alright then! Come on guys," he smiled and began to lead the way down. May, Max and Pikachu, who had leaped back onto Max's shoulder followed him down what seemed to be a stairwell-like transition down to the swimming hole. May stared around in awe as she walked down, gazing at the many flowers and greenery that seemed to be plastered to the rocks all around. They were soon down by the base of the swimming hole and Ash stood up tall, holding up his Poké Balls.

"Alright, come on out, guys!" he yelled and tossed them upward. Four Pokémon then emerged in the flashes of light: A Kingler, a Totodile, a Corphish, and a small, blue and white Pokémon with a small scallop on its belly that May had never seen before. Max's eyes sparkled in excitement.

"Oh wow! A Kingler, Totodile, Corphish and an Oshawott! They're so cool!" he exclaimed. Ash grinned.

"Alright guys, feel free to kick back," he said.

"Corphish cor!" Corphish chirped.

"Wow, they're so cute!" May gushed. She looked down at the Poké Ball in her hand and then threw it upward.

"Come on out, Wartortle! Join the party!" she exclaimed and light blue turtle Pokémon materialized from the light.

"Wartortle!" it growled and then leaped into the water. The rest of the Pokémon along with Pikachu swam off on their own and basked in the water playfully while May looked up to see Dawn and the others waving to them.

"Come on, May!" Dawn yelled thrillingly. May looked back at Ash and Max and then ran forward and leaped into the water.

"Geronimo!" she yelled excitedly as she flew out and then dove into the swimming hole. The water was cool and soothing and she could see some lotus pods whirling around her. She then sputtered back up and wiped her eyes, beckoning the others to come in.

"The water's great!" she yelled happily. Ash grinned and then jumped in after her with Max following by closely. As he surfaced, he received a great splash to the face.

"Hmph! It's about time, Ash! Too busy fixing your hair?" someone jeered. They all turned to see Barry, who smirked deviously at them. Ash glared at him while May just giggled.

"Hey May! Good to see you! And who's this?" asked Barry who now swam up closer and identified Max with narrowed eyes. He was clouted on the head by Dawn, who had now swum up to them with a big smile on her gorgeous face.

"Be nice Barry! And hi May!" she greeted. May laughed.

"Hey guys, this is my little brother, Max." she introduced. Max smiled at them and waved. Dawn's eyes brightened up.

"You're May's brother? You're so cute!" she gushed and clasped her hands together in delight. Barry pouted jealously while Max blushed and swooned. May rolled her eyes.

"Only on the outside!" she said. Max glowered at her. She stuck her tongue out at him and he began to chase her through the water. Ash on the other hand splashed upward and caught Barry in a headlock.

"What was that about my hair again?" he laughed as he playfully dragged his knuckled over Barry's head.

"You asked for it, Ketchum!" he snarled as he tried to get out. Dawn giggled at them and swam after May and Max.

"Get back here, May!" Max threatened forebodingly. May blew a raspberry at him and then splashed him. Dawn burst into laughter, only to be splashed from the other end. She whirled around and pouted angrily at the now triumphant Iris, who had swum over to them.

"Come on, Dawn, you didn't expect to keep your hair all perfect HERE!" she laughed. Dawn shook her and smirked at her, splashing her back.

"It's war!" she snickered and then began to swim away as Iris chased her. In the meanwhile, Max was succeeding in soaking his sister, who was now laughing and begging for mercy.

"Whoa whoa, young man! Calm the fires, or should I say, waves?" someone said suddenly. Max stopped splashing his sister and turned to see Cilan peering down at him in disapproval. He then shook his head smugly and put his arm around Max in a brotherly manner.

"I'm not sure who you are really, but young boys must respect ladies," he commanded. May giggled while Max looked at him strangely.

"She's my sister…" he muttered. Cilan blinked and May swam over to them.

"Thanks for the rescue, Cilan! This is my little brother, Max," she said. Max waved dumbly at him while Cilan burst into laughter.

"Oh, of course! Pleased to meet you, Max! I hope you uphold my word on the treatment of ladies," he smiled. Max laughed and smirked at him.

"If only she WAS a lady!" he snickered. May palmed his head and dunked him into the water, swimming away in fumes while Cilan hastily brought Max back up.

"I'm gonna tell Mom!" Max called out as he sputtered back to the surface.

"Tell Mom what?" Ash asked suddenly. He was now sitting on the mini rock island gazing at Max until Barry snuck up behind him and gave him a huge shove.

"Ahh!" he cried out as he fell back in with a large splash. Barry doubled back in hysterics while Dawn reprimanded him. May laughed and watched as Ash surfaced right next to her and spit out water.

"Hey, hey! You are splashing us!" Brock called in annoyance from the left edge of the swimming hole. He looked blatantly vexed while Autumn was snickering. Ash, Cilan and Barry grinned and looked at one another mischievously before they all began to approach Brock. Autumn's eyes widened and sparkled in amusement.

"Looks like I'm out!" she laughed and quickly swam away from Brock and over to where May, Dawn, Iris and Max were floating.

"What—Wait! Autumn come back!" Brock called in confusion. All of a sudden, he was bombarded with enormous splashes of water. Ash, who was grinning madly then jumped on top of him and dunked him in the water.

"Loosen up, Brock!" he shouted as they brought him back up. As he came back up, Brock shook off the excess water and gritted his teeth.

"You guys are in for it!" he growled and then dived into the water.

"Uh-oh," Ash chuckled before he and Barry were pulled into the depths of the water. Cilan, who was trying to swim away was hopelessly dragged underneath as well. The girls just stood back laughing as the boys emerged from the deep, gasping for breath. Brock, who was holding Cilan in a chokehold grinned at the girls triumphantly before Cilan took full hold of his arm and flipped him over, engaging him in another playful fight.

"Brock! I've got your back!" Ash yelled jovially as he swam towards them. He was held back by Barry, who now held him in a full nelson.

"Get him, Cilan!" he laughed. As the boys tussled in the water with one another, the girls shook their heads, giggling.

"One of them is going to drown," Iris rolled her eyes as she sat down on the mini island.

"Probably Barry," Dawn giggled as she watched Barry and Ash thrash around in the water. Autumn laughed and clasped her hands behind her head leisurely.

"It better not be Brock, he's supposed to come with me for cake tasting next week," she said.

"Cake tasting? Ooh, what kind of cake are you looking for?" Dawn inquired excitedly. May brought herself up on the rock island next to Iris and listened on intently. Autumn's eyes flickered with revere as she gazed up at the sky.

"Oh, I can just imagine it! A beautiful, three tiered hazelnut cake with a chocolate and caramel filling topped with delicious butter cream frosting, that's my dream cake!" she mused eagerly. Dawn and Iris breathed in awe and May began to drool at the tantalizing description. Autumn took immediate notice of this and laughed.

"Don't worry, I'll definitely bring some samples back for you guys!" she assured them.

"You'd better! Or I'll eat your entire cake before the actual ceremony!" Iris warned. While the girls started giggling again, May looked around for Max. He was now off in the northern end of the swimming hole playing with the other Pokémon. He obviously must have gotten bored with all of the girl talk. May smiled at him, glad that he was at least enjoying himself.

"Oh Autumn, I'm so excited for the wedding! I just can't wait!" Dawn gushed dreamily and she rested her head back on the rock island edge. Iris nodded in agreement.

"You bet! We've still got to get that dress of yours!" she added. May's eyes widened in interest.

"You still haven't gone dress shopping yet?" she asked. Autumn shook her head.

"There are too many things getting in the way! For one I need all of my bridesmaids that live here to come along, and I'm still missing a couple!" she them smirked at May. May blinked in confusion. Iris snickered.

"That means you, May!" Dawn beamed at her. May blushed and widened her eyes in surprise.

"You—you want me to be a bridesmaid?" she asked in disbelief. Autumn gave her a dumbfounded look.

"Of course! We're all practically best friends now!" she laughed. May felt a flicker of warmth in her heart. She had never really thought they felt that way about her. Though they had only known each other for a little more than a month, she had to admit, she felt extremely close to them, however she never knew that they had felt the same.

"Th-thank you so much! I would really love to!" May exclaimed happily. Autumn clapped her hands together in delight.

"Hooray! Just wait you guys, I'm going to pick some amazing dresses for you!" she declared.

"I just hope it's not your maid uniform," Iris scoffed playfully. Autumn smiled at her deviously and splashed her.

The girls began to talk quickly amongst one another again. The boys on the other hand still hadn't settled down and continued their wild escapade. It wasn't until May saw Ash dive in deep that they began to catch her attention again. Ash rapidly swam underwater towards Max, sneaking over toward him.

"Uh-oh," May giggled and directed the girls to Ash and her brother.

"Ahh!" Max screamed as Ash burst out from the water from underneath him and had Max seated on his shoulders. He waved his arms around in panic as Ash quickly stepped out onto the edge of land. Pikachu and Wartortle clapped their hands eagerly and the Pokémon cheered Ash on.

"Ash! What are you doing?" Max yelled in alarm, though there was a hint of excitement in his voice.

"Hold on tight, Little Man!" Ash replied. He then climbed up on top of a higher rock slab and pulled on hanging loop around the limb of the fringe tree that stood over them. It was a rope swing.

"There's a rope swing here too?" May asked in surprise. Iris nodded.

"Yep! We tied it up ourselves! It took the three of us to do so! Ash sat on Brock's shoulders and I sat on his and we tied it up on the highest branch we could! Ash, Barry, Dawn and I were eight. Cilan was nine and Brock was ten," she reminisced longingly. May grinned in amusement and watched as Max clung to Ash fearfully.

"This is going to be awesome…" she thought aloud.

"Woo! Yeah, Ash! Let's go!" everyone cheered. Max looked as if he were trembling.

"Max, don't be scared!" May called out. Her brother pouted instinctively.

"I'm not scared!" he retorted. May laughed and watched as Ash took firm hold of the rope swing and swiftly brought it back.

"Ready, Max?" he asked. Max gulped and bit his lip, nodding. Then, as fast as lightning, Ash brought himself back and ran at full speed, swinging off of the rope.

"Incoming!" he yelled out ecstatically as they flew through the air.

"AHH! ASH! WE'RE GOING TO DIE!" Max screamed as they took off in the air.

"Brace yourselves!" Autumn yelled and the two boys dropped into the water with an enormous splash. May laughed so hard that she slipped back into the water. She watched as Ash and Max surfaced from the deep and saw that Max was now shaking in enthrallment. Ash looked up at him, smiling.

"So was it scary?" he grinned. Max looked at him with sparkling eyes.

"That—that was awesome! Let's do it again! Come on!" he gasped with enthusiasm. May smiled at her brother's excitement.

"Wait Max! You haven't seen the adrenaline unless you've ridden with me!" Barry stepped in impatiently. Max looked at him funny before shrugging and climbing onto Barry's shoulders.

"Heh, we'll see who's better, Ketchum!" he sneered at Ash, who just scratched his head in confusion. He then raced up to the high rock and grabbed the rope swing.

"Prepare yourself for a rush!" he yelled to Max, who nodded eagerly.

"Ugh, Barry! Does everything have to be a competition with you?" Dawn groaned.

"Dawn, it's Barry. He'll even make pissing a contest," Iris pointed out. Dawn shook her head, smiling. Barry and Max then took the swing, soaring high across the air.

"YEAH!" they yelled simultaneously before falling into the water. Again, Max sputtered out of the water in pure mirth. May could tell by the look in his eyes that he was having a blast.

"That was awesome, Barry!" Max yelled as he high-fived the blond.

"Heh, take that, Ash!" he smirked at him. Ash just shook his head and dunked Barry into the water. He turned towards May.

"Come on, May! Use the rope swing!" he called out. May blushed and shook her head with a nervous smile.

"Maybe a little later!" she called back. Ash blinked and nodded in understanding.

"Okay, but I'm holding you up to—Ahh!" he suddenly cried out he was suddenly flattened by a jumping Cilan. And there was more splashing. May and the others laughed as Cilan hastily helped him up.

"My bad! I was using the rope swing!" he said nervously as Ash dangerously approached him. Another confrontation broke out and this time, Max was involved in the frenzy of splashes and dunks. May shook her head and then called out to her brother.

"Be careful, Max!" she yelled. Iris rolled her eyes.

"That Cilan can be such an idiot sometimes," she snorted. Dawn and Autumn giggled.

"A hunky idiot, right Iris?" Autumn teased. Iris suddenly turned red and glared at them.

"I never said 'hunky'!" she cried.

"Oh, but you thought so, didn't you?" the girls teased. Iris blushed even redder in embarrassment and then buried her head into May's shoulder, who patted her head consolingly.

"Aw, Iris, don't be embarrassed!" May laughed as she assured her friend. Dawn giggled again.

"What about you, May? Ash seems awfully intent on 'playing' with you!" she snickered. It was May's turn to blush now.

"W-what do you mean?" she asked nervously. Autumn rested her head back against the edge of the rock island again.

"Aw, don't tease her, Dawn! It's just that, Ash hasn't seemed this eager about a girl since Misty!" she said. May's ears suddenly perked in interest.

"Misty?" she asked, losing the embarrassment she had felt earlier. Autumn, Dawn, and now Iris nodded, smiling.

"Uh-huh! Boy, I've never seen him act the way he acted around Misty with another girl! Well, until now at least," Iris smirked. May blinked in realization. She suddenly remembered what he had said to her back when they were discussing relationships:

"_Any relationship can be tough, believe me; I know" _This had to have been the girl he hinted at. Misty.

"Who is she?" May asked. She was all ears.

"Misty Waterflower is her full name. She's a good friend of ours! She used to live here in the West Fork until a year ago. She was, and is still probably obsessed with water Pokémon. But aside from that, she and Ash were together for six years! They were crazy about each other!" Iris exclaimed. May listened on, suddenly having this strange sinking feeling inside of her. A girl whom Ash had been deeply involved with for six years; it almost felt like a spike to her heart, which it shouldn't have because they were friends. Nothing more.

"Wait, so what happened if they were going on so strongly?" May asked. She didn't realize how stern she sounded.

"Well, you see, Ash, Misty and Brock all used to travel together, and—"Dawn was about to continue, but was interrupted by May.

"Really? I didn't know that!" May exclaimed. The girls turned to her with looks of disbelief in their eyes.

"You didn't? That's weird! You and Ash seemed to be so close too!" Iris said. Dawn elbowed her and then sighed.

"Well, it's not surprising that Ash wouldn't go boasting about himself now. He's changed a lot in the last couple of years," she said. May looked at her questioningly.

"Really? What was Ash like?" she asked, smiling. Though she was interested in knowing more about Misty, it felt a bit better when the subject shifted.

"Ash? He was the definition of hot-blooded! I mean he still is, but to a much lesser extent than before!" Iris guffawed.

"Yep! We were all about six or seven years old growing up together here! We would always have so much fun together playing as kids! It was me, Barry, Ash, Misty, Brock, Cilan and Iris!" Dawn exclaimed. May looked at Autumn in confusion.

"I actually moved here about three years ago. That's when Brock and I met," she said dreamily. May nodded and then let Dawn continue.

"Well, we were together for four years. Then, when most of us had turned ten years old, we all set out to different regions to start journeys. It was something we had all wanted to do for quite some time. Even Brock and Cilan decided to come along with us. So we all set out on different paths: Barry and I decided to go together to the Sinnoh region and start out. Ash, Misty and Brock headed out to the Kanto region where Ash was originally from,"

"And Cilan and I took route to the Unova region. It was sad splitting up the group, but in the end, we all really appreciated that time. Even now, I know I'll go back to traveling someday," Iris said. May nodded her head as she listened.

"I took to competing in Contests while Barry took part in battles and tournaments. We really excelled together."

"Cilan and I seldom really participated in battling or Contests, Unova doesn't even have Contests; but we sure did have a lot of fun. And we caught a bunch of Pokémon too!" Iris added.

"So you all traveled around to different regions?" May asked.

"Yep, even Autumn was running around from region to region opening up Café Cabins!" Dawn smiled at her friend who posed jokingly.

"But why didn't you all just travel together?" May asked. Dawn's expression softened and she looked up at the sky gently.

"Because we all wanted different things. Don't get me wrong, we were in no mood to leave each other, but we knew no matter what we'd still be bonded. It was the distance that really strengthened our friendship even more. And besides, we all ended up doing pretty well in the long run!" she smiled.

"Yeah, especially Ash! You probably know by now that he's got this incredible trainer rank, huh?" Iris looked at May expectantly. She nodded her head immediately.

"Yeah, my brother actually told me, he's a battle geek," she said.

"Well, I wouldn't expect Ash to brag now. He's a lot more mellow these days," Iris shrugged. Dawn continued where she left off.

"Ash was an amazing Pokémon trainer. The first year of all of our journeys, he didn't win any leagues, but then as time went by, he worked his way up to beating every single Battle Frontier! He conquered the Indigo, Silver, and Lily-of-the-Valley Conferences and was runner up in the Ever Grande and Vertress Conferences! He's even beaten a couple of Elite Four members!" she exclaimed with much enthusiasm.

"He was even asked to become a Frontier Brain in Kanto," Iris added. May just stared at them wide eyed. She knew Ash had been a very accomplished trainer, but she never knew it was to this much of an extent. Ash was simply impressive.

"Wow, Ash is really something…!" May breathed in awe. The girls nodded.

"You've got that right! He came back incredibly strong! Along with my Barry of course!" Dawn added cutely. Iris rolled her eyes and then looked back at May.

"When Ash came back, he had changed a lot. I guess it wasn't surprising really though, considering why," Iris said, suddenly beginning to look sad. May frowned. Now all of the girls seemed solemn, which made her heart sink.

"What happened?" she asked. Dawn sighed.

"Well, after Ash came in second at the Vertress Conference, he received horrible news. His father passed away due to an illness he had for a couple of years. That was the first time I had seen Mrs. Ketchum cry," she looked down with sorrow in her eyes.

"After that, Ash stopped everything. He put an end to his traveling immediately and came back home to work on the ranch again." said Iris.

"But being Ash Ketchum, he straightened himself up really quickly. He was so strong, especially for his mother. Because of him, the ranch carried on perfectly and has been since. The ranch hands do get some credit, but Ash kept on going. That's what he does best; moving forward!" Autumn piped up confidently. The other girls brightened up at this. May just sat down in utter astonishment. From conquering several tournaments and battle trials to coping with the loss of his father to strengthening his family ranch, Ash was just an incredible guy. She couldn't believe the things he had done.

"Ash can still be a hothead, but he's toned down a whole lot! You can tell that he still loves to battle though, it's so obvious! But he won't tell anyone, he's a lot more reserved when it comes to that stuff now!" Dawn beamed. May smiled slightly at this. It was good to know that Ash was still strong.

"So that's why he never told me about himself…" she said. Iris nodded.

"Yep, Ash here's set on 'tranquility and modesty'. I never thought he could pull it off either!" she laughed. May smiled with them, but then the question came wafting back into her mind.

"Wait, so what happened with Misty then?" she asked, immediately regretting it. Autumn answered this time.

"It was a year ago, three years after everyone had come home from their journeys. I was relatively new here, but we had all gotten to know each other by then. The way the story goes is that Misty ended up breaking up with Ash in the long run." She said. May blinked in surprise. Iris continued.

"You see, Misty had dreamed of becoming a Gym Leader, for as long as we could remember. That was all she wanted, an entire gym of just water Pokémon. Well, she had finally achieved that dream after her journey with Ash. She was offered a position as the new gym leader in Cerulean City in the Kanto region. This was something that she had wanted for a long time." She said.

"She wasn't too happy to leave us all, but we all knew she was doing the right thing by following her heart. She had invited Ash to come along with her to stay in Kanto, but he had refused her ultimately for the sake of the ranch. So she and Ash ended things there and she packed up and moved herself to Cerulean. Though we don't get to talk much, she's doing pretty well there now." Dawn explained. May, who didn't exactly understand it, felt this small relief come over her.

"So she and Ash are really finished?" she asked without thinking.

"Yep. It was pretty sad, seeing it end like that. Ash was crazy about Misty, he even had a special lure made for her!" Iris exclaimed. Autumn snickered then.

"Yeah, but he's totally over her now. I think he's moved on actually…" she smirked as she looked up at May, who now began to blush furiously.

"Wh-who, me?" she said, completely flustered. Dawn laughed.

"Don't worry May, we know you've got a boyfriend in Hoenn!" she laughed. Autumn sighed impatiently.

"Yes, but Ash hasn't acted this way with a girl since Misty left! It's obvious he cares a lot about you, May," she pointed out. May frowned, her cheeks still red.

"Well, May's already involved with some other guy anyway. Ash isn't the type to move in on someone else's girl. He probably just sees you as a close friend is all, so don't get all ruffled," Iris winked at her. May smiled weakly. For some reason, that statement made her feel more down than elated. And she felt guilty for the same reason. Autumn shrugged.

"I guess. But overall, things have been a lot brighter since you've come along, May! For one, Ash seems happier and it's just more lively around here!" she grinned. May blushed again, more lightly this time.

"Wow, I feel so flattered!" she giggled. As the girls began to break out into conversation again, May stared upwards in deep thought. It seemed like Ash had suffered a lot, but he carried himself with such great strength and optimism already. She felt a pang of sadness suddenly. For someone to overcome that much negativity in life, he had to have really endured some pain. Her admiration for him was becoming stronger now, much to her dismay. There was still Drew. She knew she still felt attached to Drew. They had been through so much together. Though at first he had been snide and somewhat of a bully, she had come to see his truly warm interior and appreciation for her. Despite their current fight, she couldn't help but admire him as well. She sighed in distress, feeling walls crumble down on her, until something broke her thoughts rather abruptly.

"Wh-huh?" she exclaimed as she suddenly felt herself lifted off of the rock island.

"Get ready for the splash!" Ash yelled. He had her over his back with her legs dangling in front and then he charged into the water, yodeling like Tarzan.

"Down the hatch!" he cried out excitedly.

"AAH!" May screamed as they collided with the water. As she quickly surfaced and spat out water in her mouth, she glowered ferociously at Ash who was laughing hysterically. Everybody else was laughing as well.

"Why you—"she growled and then leaped on Ash, clinging to his back angrily.

"Ahaha, ow! May!" he laughed as he tried to spin her off of his back. He suddenly pulled her up in a piggy-back style and then carried her out of the water and towards the rope swing.

"Hold on tight!" he yelled as he grabbed the rope and then ran forward with all of his might. Before May could get off of him, they were propelling back into the water again. May laughed suddenly as she felt herself fly the air; she felt a powerful surge in her heart and her mind was elated and free. It was one of the best feelings she had ever had. And then they crashed into with an enormous splash. As soon as they came back up, everybody was clapping. May looked around and smiled at them gleefully, completely forgetting about all of her stressors. It was a day of merriment, and it was meant to stay that way.

"You want to go again?" Ash asked, to which May responded by nodding eagerly.

"Not so fast! Come on, Dawn! Let's get up there!" Barry stood up on the land edge and smirked at Ash. Dawn groaned and as she began to swim toward him, she gasped in surprise as her boyfriend's feet were yanked off of the ground and he was dragged into the water.

"Gah!" he cried out.

"Easy on the races, Barry!" Cilan laughed. He and Ash had dragged him off of the land and back into the water.

"Ugh! I got water up my nose!" he spat and then tackled the two back into a thrashing mound in the water. May and Dawn laughed together as they watched their circle of friends. Cilan, Barry and Ash were playfully battering each other up again while Iris sat with Max and the other Pokémon, introducing some of them to him. Autumn had now swum back to Brock's side and they were cuddled up together by the opposite edge just laughing at the fighting group. When the three dispersed again, Dawn floated back to a panting Barry and kissed his cheek to calm him down while Cilan just went back to sit with Iris and Max. Ash on the other hand swam up to May and gazed at her with kind eyes.

"So, what do you think of Wasser's Heart?" he asked. May laughed and looked around her, identifying the beautiful scenery again. She scooped up a nearby floating lotus pod and took in the sweet aroma, sighing heartily and then looking back up at Ash with eyes full of warmth.

"I really like it," she smiled at him. Ash grinned and then fell backwards in the water, relaxingly floating on his back.

"I'm glad! We'll definitely come here more!" he exclaimed. May smiled gently at him as he cruised around the water leisurely.

"I may even like it more that what I've got at home…" she said, staring intensely at Ash who didn't notice the serious look in her eyes. She looked down and thought again _Yes…I may even like it more than what I've got at home…_

* * *

So there it is! May's emotions become suffer a maelstrom with everything going on around her. Then she's got that dinner with Ash and his mother. I would really like to thank everyone who has reviewed my story. I really appreciate the kind compliments and constructive criticism, it really motivates me to keep on writing more chapters. I really hope more of you can review my story so I know exactly what you think of it. It's better for me as a writer to really hear your opinion and again, it keeps me going. Thanks again to everybody who has read and reviewed. You all inspire me.

P.S. I made Iris's last name 'Drake' in obvious reference to her Dragon Pokémon specialty along with a reference (Shout out!) to one of my favorite historical figures, Sir Francis Drake! If you don't know who he is, I suggest you read about him, he's awesome! But anyways, thanks again for reading! Until next time!


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